This Life of Ours
by StrawberryPajamas
Summary: AU Fifty Shades Freed: Newlyweds Christian and Ana Grey are excited to begin their lives together, but starting a family seems to be the last thing on their minds. Coming across a 4-year-old child abandoned by her mother might make them reconsider certain aspects of their lives, however. Can the Grey's open their hearts and home to let in a little girl in need of love? HEA
1. Elliot's Accident

**A/N: Hi everybody! :)**

 **As you can probably tell, this is my new story. It's going to be a little different than my previous ones, so I hope you all will like it. This one takes place right after the events in Fifty Shades Darker, and a couple months after CG and Ana's wedding, but there is no Jack Hyde and no Elena. Teddy and Phoebe also will not be in this story - it basically will be my own, more original version of Fifty Shades Freed. If you're already interested, please read on and enjoy! If not, then I'm sorry and goodbye.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

 ****WARNING: This chapter contains violence that may be disturbing to some readers. If you are sensitive to such things, please read on with caution.*****

* * *

 **This Life of Ours**

Chapter 1: Elliot's Accident

Elliot loved Friday nights.

Years ago, Friday night would have meant going out to some club in the city where all the college girls would hang out, find a bunch of young ladies he could buy drinks for, and then, at the end of the night, hook up with the hottest, drunkest one in the group. In retrospect, those old habits he had of partying probably weren't his best moments - for so long, though, he had felt that a committed relationship would take all the fun out of life, and he wanted to spend what time he had having as much fun as possible. He sure had grown up a lot since then, and quite honestly, he was much happier for it.

Kate was seriously the best girlfriend in the world - not only was she smoking hot and a total vixen in the bedroom, but she was also hilarious and sweet. She loved him with all her heart, but she had never been the clingy type who didn't trust him to go anywhere without her. It was like she was made just for him, and Elliot knew he was one lucky son of a bitch for managing to snatch up such a wonderful woman…

But that didn't mean he didn't want to go out and have fun with his guy friends once in awhile.

"Next round's on me!" Elliot's friend Barry announced, holding his glass of liquor up in the air. Elliot and his buddies Roger and Craig chorused their agreement, also holding up their drinks. Elliot and some of his fellow construction worker friends were out this Friday night at a small dive bar called _Lucky's_ , drinking away the night and celebrating the fact they didn't have to work tomorrow. Elliot often spent his Friday nights with his work friends - as much as he loved spending his nights with Kate, he got to see her every other night of the week, and once in awhile he needed his guy time. Kate understood, thankfully, and let him hang out with his friends without questioning it. She trusted him completely, and Elliot loved her all the more for that.

"Bro, you gotta stop checking your phone," Elliot said to his buddy Roger, who was staring down at his smartphone screen for the millionth time that night.

"Ugh… I can't help it, man," Roger whined, clearly already a bit intoxicated. He blinked down at his phone. "Tessa might call tonight."

"It's been two weeks, man," Elliot couldn't help but smirk sympathetically, clapping his hand on his friend's shoulder. "She's obviously not looking for a third date."

Roger groaned, dropping his phone on the table before burying his face in his hands. Elliot couldn't help but chuckle at his friend's dramatics - Roger was a decent guy who could easily get girls, but he had always been a sad drunk, much to his friends' amusement.

"Dude, why are you so hung up on this Tessa chick?" Craig asked humorously, taking a sip of his own beer. "You didn't even fuck her, so why the fuck should you care if she calls you?"

"He just needs to keep his dick wet," Barry joked, causing the other guys to laugh. "I'm sure we could get him some pussy tonight if we looked hard enough."

Elliot glanced around at the bar they were at - this place was pretty dead, and definitely more subdued than a the other bars they had already gone to that night.

"We're not gonna find any girls here, man," Craig shook his head morosely. "How the fuck did we end up _here_ , anyway?"

"Yeah dude, I don't think I've even been in this part of Seattle before," Elliot raised his eyebrows at Barry.

"Sorry guys. I was hoping to meet up with my buddy around here, but I guess he's not showing up," Barry grimaced, glancing around the bar. "You guys wanna hit up another joint? There's that new place near the Pike Market I heard about, it's supposed to be pretty cool."

"Tessa lives near the Market…" Roger mumbled before laying his head down on the table and closing his eyes. The other guys laughed.

"I think Romeo here's had enough," Elliot chuckled, moving his friend's near-empty beer bottle away from him. "I can take him home - you two go check out that other bar if you want."

"You sure, man?" Barry asked, glancing between him and Roger.

"Yeah, it's fine," Elliot shrugged. "I need to be getting home to Kate, anyway."

Craig chuckled and shook his head incredulously. "Of course you do. Man, the El-King's got a lady waiting for him at home… never thought I'd see the day."

Elliot grinned. "Never been happier, man. You should think about settling down too."

"Well, first I gotta find a girl willing to put up with my sorry ass."

Elliot laughed, and the four of them began gathering their things to finally head out. Craig and Barry both left in Barry's car and headed over to the Pike Market while Elliot went to call himself and Roger a cab home. He wasn't exactly sure what part of Seattle they were in right now - they had all carpooled in Barry's car before, and he already had a lot to drink tonight - but he at least hoped the cab driver would know how to get to Roger's house from here.

"Come on, buddy," Elliot said, dragging Roger to his feet. "Time to go home."

Roger grumbled something in response before sluggishly getting to his feet while grabbing his coat. Elliot snickered and shook his head before leading them outside.

It was a bit chilly out tonight - Elliot realized it must have been raining out a little bit earlier. The asphalt road glimmered under the yellow streetlamps, and the night sky roiled with menacing purple and black clouds. Elliot pulled his coat tighter around his body as he and Roger stepped out onto the curb, waiting for the cab they had called earlier.

"Where are we, even?" The cold night air seemed to sober Roger up a bit as he looked curiously around the empty street. The nearby buildings all looked broken down and derelict, and the distinct scent of gasoline lingered in the air. This neighborhood definitely had a more ghetto feel to it, Elliot couldn't help but notice.

"Um… 12th Street," he read on a broken street sign a few yards away.

"12th Street?" Roger repeated, a frown on his face. "Near the 280?"

"I think so," Elliot said. "Why, do you know where we are?"

Roger grimaced. "We're in The Jungle, dude."

Elliot felt himself go pale as he stared at his friend. "Seriously?"

"Yeah, man," Roger glanced at their surroundings. "I've driven through this area before - this is definitely The Jungle."

Anyone who lived in the Washington area knew The Jungle was a bad neighborhood in the heart of Seattle notorious for crime and homeless drug addicts. Most people tended to avoid this place like the plague, and of all the neighborhoods Elliot and Roger could have ended up at one in the morning while intoxicated, this was definitely the worst.

"Well shit," Elliot mumbled, glancing down at his watch. "The cab's not coming for at least another fifteen minutes."

"Let's go back inside," Roger suggested, but just as they turned back toward the bar, they noticed the lights had all gone out and the sign in the window now read _Closed._

"Fuck," Elliot hissed, turning back toward the road. "Goddammit, why did Barry have to drag us out here?"

It was definitely getting creepier out - a couple streetlamps down the road began to flicker and go out, and they could see people moving beyond their line of vision in a nearby alleyway. In the far distance, they heard somebody shout out, their voice echoing in the silent night.

"Um… could you maybe call up your brother or something?" Roger suggested nervously, looking in the direction of where they heard the sound. "He has those FBI security guards with him all the time, maybe one of them could pick us up?"

Elliot shook his head. "Christian and his wife are at some charity dinner thing tonight, so all the security's probably with them. Besides, they wouldn't be able to get here before the cab anyway."

Roger groaned under his breath, resigning himself to the fact that they probably had to stand out here and wait on the curb in this dangerous neighborhood, unarmed and vulnerable. Elliot shoved his hands in his coat pockets, and frowned as he gazed at their surroundings. A few homeless people had emerged from the alleyway and were shuffling down the sidewalk, staring at Elliot and Roger from across the street.

"…Okay , if worst comes to worst, we'll start walking that way," Elliot muttered, jerking his head to their left. "I'm sure there's a 24-hour drugstore or a gas station around that's still open and we can duck in for a few minutes."

"Okay," Roger agreed, glancing nervously around them. He shoved his hands in his pockets as well, looking anxious for the cab to arrive.

The two of them stood together on the curb for about a minute, not saying a word - both of them were trying not to pay attention to the homeless people who had walked out of the alleyway and were now slowly coming nearer to them. There was one lanky man who was mumbling to himself, a portly man in a beanie, and a tiny old woman with beady eyes that seemed to pierce right through Elliot as she stared at him.

"Excuse me, do you have a cigarette?" she asked, her voice quavering.

"No, sorry," Elliot said to her nervously while Roger shook his head.

The woman stared at Elliot for a few seconds before mumbling something to herself and shuffling away. The portly man began to shamble after her, but the lanky guy stayed right where he was - he continued to mutter to himself as he stared down at his shoes and crossed his arms tightly in front of his chest, as if he were cold. He seemed unaware of Elliot and Roger a couple feet away, who were both looking nervously at him.

"Come on," Elliot muttered to Roger, indicating they head in the opposite direction. Roger gave an imperceptible nod, and the two of them silently began to walk down the street.

"Where…?" the man suddenly spoke, and Elliot and Roger turned to look back at him. "What… are… you?"

He reached one hand up and began pulling at his hair, his eyes wild. Elliot knew immediately that this guy either had some sort of mental disability or was on drugs.

"Let's go, man," Roger muttered quietly to Elliot. He nodded in agreement, and the two of them turned back around to walk away…

And that's when it happened.

There was a loud, strangled cry, and next second, the homeless man had tackled Elliot to the ground. Roger was knocked sideways into the concrete as Elliot's head collided with the sidewalk. He immediately yelled out in pain, but before he could register what had happened and try to escape, the homeless man had pulled out a switchblade.

Elliot's screams rang out into the night as the knife suddenly sank into his right bicep.

"HEY!" Roger scrambled to his feet and forcefully tackled the homeless man and his knife off of Elliot. The two men landed with a heavy thump on the side of the road, and Roger managed to pin the guy down as he struggled and yelled.

"ARGHH!" Elliot yelled out in agony, clutching his upper arm as dark red blood gushed out, drenching his sleeve. "FUCK!"

"HELP!" Roger yelled into the night, struggling to subdue the crazy man while looking at Elliot with wide, frightened eyes. He gazed frantically around the area. "SOMEBODY HELP US!"

There were suddenly bright lights that flashed for a moment before the sound of screeching tires filled the air. Car doors slammed as a the sounds of running footsteps approached Elliot, who was still bleeding and writhing in pain on the ground.

"Oh my God - Carly, call 911! This man's bleeding!" A woman shouted, sounding scared and frantic.

Elliot heard another woman say something, the sound of scuffling from Roger and the homeless man, and a car horn in the distance. White hot pain sliced through Elliot's arm - it was the worst pain he had ever felt in his life, and even though his body and mind were completely in shock, he somehow knew he needed to stop himself from bleeding out or he was going to die.

 _I'm going to die…_

"It's alright, sir, an ambulance is on it's way," the woman who had shouted before was now kneeling beside him and speaking soothingly to him. "Just hang on, it'll only be a few more minutes."

 _Only a few more minutes…_

Elliot inhaled sharply through his nose, trying to control the urge he had to scream or vomit. He clutched onto his bleeding arm, gritting his teeth while trying to stay conscious. He suddenly thought of Kate, and the possibility of never seeing her again, and his urge to fight suddenly grew stronger.

 _I'm going to see her again_ , he thought to himself firmly. _I_ will _see her again._

Elliot managed to stay conscious until the ambulance arrived. Those sirens were probably the best sounds he had ever heard in his entire life.

* * *

30 minutes later

The scene outside _Lucky's_ Bar on 12th Street was pandemonium - squad cars and ambulances littered the road outside the building and side alleyway, sending flashing red and blue lights through the dark night. Elliot Grey had already been taken onto one of the ambulances and treated for his stab wound, while the assailant (ID'd as Darryl Credd) was currently sitting in the back of the squad car in handcuffs, a large bruise on his face and a crazed expression in his eyes. Roger Larski had been the man who subdued Credd, and was giving his statement to the police along with the two women who were also witnesses to the crime.

Officer Kaz Sterling stood and watched everything going on around him - he had just finished writing up the report on Daryl Credd, who had had a history of violence and recreational drug use. That sort of report wasn't uncommon for people living in this area… Kaz glanced around at the derelict buildings and the graffitied walls with a frown on his face. Crime was pretty common in neighborhoods around here, and as a cop it was always tough to deal with, especially when it involved innocent victims like tonight.

"You ain't gonna believe this, Kaz," his partner Sandy, a short Hispanic woman with her hair in a tight bun, approached him on the sidewalk beside a nearby alleyway. "The guy who got stabbed… apparently he's Elliot Grey, the brother of the CEO of Grey Enterprise Holdings."

Kaz raised his eyebrows. "No shit? What's a guy like him doing all the way out here?"

"Apparently he and some of his friends were just out bar-hopping and they ended up here," Sandy shrugged. "Just in the wrong place at the wrong time, I guess."

Kaz shook his head - like Sandy, he was wondering if this incident was going to make the papers tomorrow since the brother of one of Seattle's most high-profile guys was the victim.

 _This could definitely get messy._

Before either Kaz or Sandy could say anything, they both heard a noise from the alleyway behind them. Their reactions were instinctive: in a split second, they had pulled out their guns and cocked them, pointing them protectively in front of them as they cautiously stepped into the alleyway. Sandy pulled out a flashlight and shone it around, lighting up the darkened area.

"Seattle PD!" Kaz spoke loudly and authoritatively. "Come out with your hands up!"

Nobody stepped forward, but the noise came again - it was a shifting sound from a large, overturned box beside a rusty green dumpster.

Kaz and Sandy both relaxed slightly - it was probably just a small animal trapped under there or something. Kaz put his gun away, but Sandy kept her gun and flashlight on the box in front of them, cocked and ready just in case.

Kaz cautiously moved forward and lifted up the box...

Underneath it was a tiny little girl, covered from head to toe in dirt, sitting curled up on the ground and trembling with her knees tucked up under her chin. Her clothes looked worn and tattered, and her black hair lay snarled around her slim shoulders. Large, scared brown eyes stared up at Kaz, and she immediately hid her face when the flashlight shone down onto her.

"Oh my God," Sandy breathed, and she exchanged a shocked glance with her partner.

 ** _TO BE CONTINUED_**

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 **A/N: Happy Halloween everyone!**

 **I know I said I would post this tomorrow, but as it turns out I'm going to be busy all day Monday and I wasn't going to have time to edit and post. So I thought I'd finish this up early for you :)** **I hope you all enjoyed the introduction to my new story - I realize this first chapter got a little dark, but I promise it won't get worse than this at any other point in the story.**

 **I'll try to update fairly regularly, but I'll probably only be able to update about once a week at most. I'll also be starting a new Pinterest board for this story if you want to follow that.**

 **If you aren't already, make sure you follow me on Pinterest and on Facebook! I go by the username Straw Paj on both accounts.**

 **Please leave a review on my new story and let me know what you think!**


	2. Hospital Visit

**A/N: Wow guys - over 100 favorites and 250 followers already?! Thank you all so much for your amazing love and support :) Here's the next chapter for you.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

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 **Chapter 2: Hospital Visit**

Tonight had been amazing. Granted, Christian and Ana's evening had just consisted of a typical charity dinner filled with the usual stuffy businessmen and fine dining, but for Christian it meant so much more. It was the first real event he and Ana had gone to together as husband and wife, and the thrill it gave Christian was immense. Never in all his adult years had he thought it would excite him so much to introduce Ana to all of his colleagues as "Mrs. Grey." It made him want her all the more - and it certainly helped that she looked immaculately sexy this evening in her black off-the-shoulder mermaid dress and silver heels. Her smoky black eye makeup also served to emphasize her gorgeous blue eyes, and as long as they stayed trained on Christian and no one else, he was happy.

Love certainly had turned him into a jealous man.

This amazing evening had finally come to an end, however, and Christian and Ana now walked out of the front doors of the Radisson and climbed into the backseat of their black Audi A3, Taylor already in the driver's seat. The happy couple had had a few glasses of champagne between them, and they were both rather giggly and carefree.

"Whoo," Ana let out a breath as she plopped down on her seat, grinning widely. Christian chuckled as he settled down beside her, loosening his bowtie from his neck. "That party was _so_ much fun!"

"I agree," Christian smirked at her, pulling his bowtie off completely and popping open his collar. "I usually never have fun at those things. Thank you for coming with me tonight, baby."

"Mm, it was my pleasure, Mr. Grey," Ana said lustily, leaning over and cuddling up beside him. "I kind of liked being introduced to everyone as your wife."

"I liked it too," Christian smiled seductively at her before leaning down and kissing her on the lips. "In fact, I loved it. I think I could get used to calling you my wife, Anastasia."

"You better," Ana huffed, and Christian couldn't help but chuckle. "You're gonna be doing it for the rest of your life, Grey."

"I look forward to it," Christian smiled, and Ana rewarded him with a beautiful smile. "We're only 67 days in, after all."

"And we only have a million more to go," Ana giggled. Christian chuckled before leaning down and capturing her lips with his own. She tasted of sweet champagne and Ana - a wonderful combination.

 _God, I love this woman._

Before their kiss could escalate into anything more, Christian felt his phone buzz from inside his breast pocket. Normally, he would ignore a call when he was wrapped up in his woman, but since it was one o'clock in the morning on a weekend, he immediately knew something was wrong.

Christian pulled away from Ana and took his BlackBerry out, frowning down at the screen.

"Who is it?" Ana asked, frowning down at his phone as well.

"I'm not sure," Christian said. He didn't recognize the number of the person calling him this hour of the night. "It's a Seattle area code, though."

"That's weird," Ana mused. "Are you going to answer it?"

Christian was sorely tempted to just let it ring, but at the last second decided to answer. He hit the green button and brought it up to his ear. "Hello?"

"Hello sir, this is Marsha Pletz from Overlake Hospital Medical Center. Is this Christian Grey, brother of Elliot Grey?" A professional-sounding woman spoke from the other end, and Christian's stomach immediately plummeted.

"Yes, this is him," Christian answered hesitantly. He looked at Ana, who was staring at him with a shocked expression. She immediately could tell something was wrong.

"I'm sorry to be calling you like this sir, but your brother has just been brought into our emergency room with a serious stab wound to his right arm," the woman explained. "He seemed to be the victim of an unprovoked attack on 12th Street near the Interstate. The doctors are currently treating him, and he's stable for now, but we thought we would let you know since you have been listed as one of his emergency contacts."

Christian felt suddenly dizzy, and his stomach lurched as if he were about to vomit.

 _Elliot? Stabbed?_

"Oh my God," Christian said, feeling sick. "But… he-he's okay, right?"

"He is, sir," the woman assured him. Ana clutched at Christian's arm, unable to hear their conversation, but looking concerned all the same. "We are getting in touch with all of his emergency contacts currently on record and updating you all on his situation. We will be contacting Grace Trevelyan-Grey right after you, sir."

"Okay, thank you," Christian said, as if in a daze. "I'll be right over."

"Okay, sir. Have a good night."

Christian hung up the phone without saying goodbye. "Taylor - we need to get to the Overlake Hospital Medical Center. Now!"

"Yes sir," Taylor said without hesitation, and quickly made a right turn.

"Christian, what's going on?" Ana demanded, sounding extremely worried.

Christian looked at her. "Elliot was attacked."

Ana stared back at him, her eyes wide. " _What_?"

Christian shook his head, looking distressed. "The woman on the phone said she was from the hospital, and Elliot was just taken in to the emergency room with a stab wound to his right arm. I don't know the full details yet, but apparently it was a random attack on 12th Street near the Interstate."

"Oh my God," Ana placed a hand over her mouth, looking extremely concerned. "He's okay, though, right?"

Christian nodded, still feeling a bit dazed.

"Oh my God," Ana said again, the hand over her mouth moving to her heart. "The Interstate… isn't that near The Jungle? What was he doing all the way out there?"

Christian shook his head dubiously. "Your guess is as good as mine."

"Oh God, I wonder if Kate knows?" Ana's eyes suddenly went wide. "Do you think she with him during the attack?"

"I don't know," Christian said. "Call her and find out."

Ana quickly grabbed her clutch purse to find her phone and dial her best friend, and Christian turned back to gaze out the window, frowning to himself. What had started out as a wonderful, magical evening for him and his new wife now delineated into an awful situation where Christian was seriously worried for his brother's safety and well-being.

 _Christ, I hope he's okay._

During the ride to the hospital, Ana talked with Kate on the phone - Kate apparently had no idea what had happened to Elliot, since she had been asleep at home when it happened, so Ana was filling her in on what she knew so far. While Christian had never exactly been Katherine Kavanagh's biggest fan, when he heard her frantically demanding Ana tell her everything over the phone, his heart couldn't help but go out to her. Her significant other had been in mortal peril, and Christian knew he would absolutely lose it if something like this had ever happened to Ana.

They finally arrived at the hospital - it was one Christian had never been to before, since it was in a bad part of the city he generally didn't often visit. The fact that he and Anastasia were dressed to the nines probably didn't help matters either, but Christian didn't really have time to worry about it as Taylor pulled up to the front doors and he and Ana quickly got out, rushing through the front doors.

After talking to the woman at the front desk, they headed down an adjacent corridor, and eventually found Elliot sitting upright on a bed near the corner of the ER, thin blue curtains separating him from all the neighboring beds.

"Elliot!" Christian exclaimed, he and Ana hurrying up to him. They could already see Elliot's right arm was wrapped in thick white gauze all the way up to his shoulder, and his complexion appeared pale and clammy, like he was about to be sick. He managed to give his brother and Ana a small smile and a wave with his good arm when he saw them, however.

"Hey bro," he said once they approached. "Hey Ana. Nice clothes."

"Oh my God. Elliot, are you okay?" Ana asked worriedly, stepping forward and placing her hand on his good arm.

"I've been better," Elliot murmured. "I got eleven stitches in my arm, and the doctors here just gave me some pain meds which haven't kicked in yet."

"Are you sure you're alright?" Christian asked concernedly. "You look like shit, man."

"Gee thanks," Elliot shot his brother a sarcastic look. "I could go for some water, though."

"I'll go ask a nurse," Christian said immediately, and hurried over to the nurse's station.

"Here, lie back," Ana ordered after Christian left, gently pushing Elliot so he lay down on the bed. He complied, though very slowly. "I called Kate on our way here and told her what's going on. She's on her way over now."

"Thank you," Elliot muttered, sounding relieved. "I was going to call her myself, but I'm not sure what happened to my phone."

"I already told you man, I'm holding onto it for you," a voice behind them said.

Ana turned around and was met face to face with a good-looking man with short dark hair and a long nose. He had Elliot's phone in one hand and a clipboard in the other.

"Oh… thanks Roger…" Elliot mumbled, his voice slurring. After a moment, his eyes fluttered closed and he suddenly drifted off to sleep.

"Did he just fall asleep?" Ana asked, looking at Elliot with a confused expression.

"The doctors gave him hydrocodone about thirty minutes ago to combat the pain," Roger explained. "He was starting to get a bit spacey a few minutes before you guys arrived, which is why I took his phone away. That stuff really knocks you for a loop."

"I can see that," Ana couldn't help but smirk as she looked at Elliot's sleeping form. She turned back to Roger. "Are you a friend of Elliot's?"

"Yeah. I'm Roger," he said, shifting the clipboard to his other hand and holding it out for Ana. "I was with Elliot when the attack happened."

"Oh," Ana raised her eyebrows in concern as she shook his hand. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Roger shrugged. "Didn't get stabbed, at least. Are you Kate?"

"Actually, she's my wife," Christian approached them before Ana could respond, a styrofoam cup of water in his hand. "Elliot's girlfriend is on her way here."

"Christian," Roger greeted, and the two men shook hands. "It's good to see you again."

"You too, Roger."

"I'm Ana," Ana smiled at Roger, who smiled back.

"It's nice to meet you. Elliot did mention you guys were at a charity dinner thing tonight," he looked their outfits, grimacing apologetically. "I'm sorry if we totally ruined your evening."

"Oh please, it's not your fault," Ana insisted as Christian shook his head. "It was terrible this had to happen to you guys tonight."

"You were there when it happened?" Christian asked Roger, looking serious.

"Yeah," Roger nodded solemnly, and he began to recount exactly what had occurred - how he and Elliot had had no idea their friends dragged them to the bad part of town, how some homeless people approached them for cigarettes, and how one suddenly attacked Elliot out of nowhere. Ana and Christian silently listened to him talk, and after about a minute, Ana slipped her hand through Christian's arm and held him tight. Christian knew she was thinking about what would have happened if it had been Christian who was attacked, which was the same thought that had been plaguing him about her regarding this whole situation. They both knew how lucky they were to have each other.

Suddenly, the doors of the ER burst open, and Christian, Ana and Roger all turned to see a gurney being wheeled in by two EMTs in blue windbreakers. Nurses and doctors quickly moved aside to make room as the gurney was wheeled into the bay area next to Elliot's bed. Amidst all the activity, Christian, Ana and Roger could just make out a little disheveled girl lying on the bed.

"Wow, that must be her," Roger mused, sounding surprised. Ana and Christian turned to look at him.

"What?"

"I overheard some of the cops talking earlier before we were brought to the hospital," Roger explained. "They apparently found a little girl abandoned in an alleyway near the bar where Elliot was stabbed. I'm not sure what state she's in, but I'm sure it's not good."

Ana and Christian glanced at each other before turning back to look at the little girl on the hospital bed. She didn't look older than four, and she certainly looked like she had been living in an alleyway for an extended amount of time - her outfit was just an overlong t-shirt that was tattered and worn, and her long black hair looked dirty and unkempt. If her appearance alone wasn't heartbreaking enough, the fact that she looked absolutely terrified of everything and everyone around her made the scene all the more heart-wrenching.

One of the doctors said something about "dehydrated," and a nurse quickly wheeled in an IV stand while attaching a bag of fluids to the top of it. Another nurse took the little girl's arm in her hand and swiped an alcohol pad along the inside of her elbow.

The little girl looked terribly frightened by all the activity going on around her, and as soon as she realized the nurses were about to stick a needle in her arm, she absolutely lost it. She yanked her arm out of their grasps and began bucking and kicking wildly, screaming at the top of her lungs. Some of the nurses tried to speak soothingly to her while trying to calm her down, but the little girl was inconsolable - her terrified cries filled the entire ER, and people were beginning to stop and stare.

Ana tore her gaze away and looked down at the floor, heartbroken by the scene that was unfolding before her. She couldn't imagine how scared and confused that little girl was by everything going on around her, and part of her wished she could do something to help.

Christian hadn't said a word, but Ana noticed his hand by his side had balled into a tight fist. She glanced back up at his face, and his expression was beyond anything she had ever seen before - he looked absolutely livid. His blazing gray eyes were fixed upon the doctors manhandling the little girl, and his mouth was fixed in a firm line. His entire frame was trembling slightly from rage.

"Baby?" Ana said tentatively. Christian didn't respond, his eyes still glued to the doctors surrounding the bed, and Ana suddenly realized…

He was having a flashback.

"She doesn't want to be touched," Christian murmured, so quietly Ana almost didn't hear him.

"What?"

In a moment, Christian had rushed forward, and before Ana could stop him, he shoved one of the doctors away from the girl, causing him to stumble. All the other doctors and nurses stopped to stare at Christian in shock.

"Holy shit," Roger said, sounding stunned.

"Sir!" the doctor Christian had shoved straightened up and glared at him. "Let us do our job!"

"She doesn't want to be touched! Can't you tell?!" Christian yelled back at him. Taylor had appeared out of nowhere and stepped in front of Christian, stopping him from moving forward.

"Sir, this girl needs immediate medical attention," the doctor snapped angrily. "You can't interfere with our work!"

"But she's fucking terrified!" Christian yelled at him. "Just look at her!"

"Sir, calm down," Taylor ordered his boss.

"You are not involved in this," the doctor snapped back. "We are trained professionals who know how to deal with cases like this!"

Christian and the doctor continued to argue with each other, and the surrounding people just watched, none of them noticing the little girl had stopped her screaming. She now just lay on the bed, curled up in the fetal position as she trembled in fear, staring at the doctors around her and obviously wary of being manhandled by them again. For a few seconds, no one paid any attention to her, that was until someone silently walked up to her and knelt down beside her bed.

Ana simply gazed at the trembling girl for a moment before tentatively bringing her hand up and slowly brushing her hair away from her face. The girl turned and stared at Ana with her large brown eyes, and Ana repeated the motion. She did it a third time, and the girl's trembling ceased.

"It's okay," Ana breathed, trying to be gentle and soothing despite the circumstances around them. "Everything is going to be okay."

The little girl's only response was to continue staring at Ana with her wide brown eyes before shifting her gaze to something else in the distance, not saying a word. Ana knew that this girl had already had a rough life, and even though she didn't know what had possessed her to walked over and comfort her, she hoped that this had made a small difference.

This girl deserved at least one moment of peace in her life.

* * *

 **A/N: Hope you all liked that chapter! Leave a review and let me know what you think so far!**

 **I also just want to clarify for some of my readers - some of you were asking if the girl will end up being Christian's illegitimate child from a past relationship, and the answer is no. I kind of think that's a stupid plot twist and I hope that, as a writer, you all will give me more credit than that :/**

 **If you would like to follow my pinterest board for this story, the URL is www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	3. Ward of the State

**A/N: Thank you all so much for your reviews and support! Here's the next chapter for you :)**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing**

* * *

 **Chapter 3: Ward of the State**

Thankfully, Taylor and Ana had managed to calm Christian down enough so he wouldn't attack that doctor again, but hospital security ended up having to escort him out of the ER so the other doctors could do their jobs without interference. Since Christian's brother was a patient there, the security guards were kind enough to only keep him in the lobby instead of kicking him out of the hospital altogether, and Christian didn't object, for which Ana was grateful. The last thing they needed was for the media to get wind of the fact that the Christian Grey got into a fight with a doctor and was subsequently kicked out of a hospital for it.

"Baby, it's getting late," Ana sat down in a chair beside her husband in the hospital lobby, looking at him in concern. She had just come back from the ER, where Kate was now staying with Elliot, and she knew there was nothing else for her and Christian to do here now. "We should probably be going home soon."

Christian didn't answer - he had barely spoken two words since he had been thrown out of the ER. He now just sat in a stiff-back plastic chair, his elbows on his knees and a hard expression on his handsome face as he stared down at the linoleum floor.

Ana let out a small sigh, feeling a bit frustrated. "Christian, I'm sorry that you're having a rough night, and I know you want to be here for Elliot, but it's late and there's nothing more for us to do here."

"My mother's coming," he said firmly, and Ana stopped talking. "Once she's here, then we can leave."

Ana stared at him - he spoke in a stern voice that she recognized from his Dom persona, and she wasn't sure how to argue with him when he was like this. After a moment, though, she nodded.

"Okay."

Ana settled back into her chair, and neither of them said a word as they watched people walk in and out of the hospital lobby. It was past 2 o'clock in the morning, so there weren't very many people around except for a few nurses and a couple listless-looking visitors. Ana and Christian were both attracting a lot of weird looks due to their overly fancy clothes, though Ana couldn't really bring herself to care.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, Grace walked through the front doors. She looked more dressed down than Ana had ever seen her before in a black long-sleeved tee, bootcut jeans, and minimal makeup. A small purple duffel bag was thrown over her shoulder, and when she spotted Christian and Ana, she smiled in relief before walking over to them.

"Christian - Ana," she greeted as she approached, and they got to their feet. "I'm so sorry, I was finishing up a shift at the hospital when I got the call from here - these were the only street clothes I had with me. Is Elliot alright?"

"Yeah, he is," Christian assured her, allowing her to give him a one-armed hug and a peck on the cheek. "He's sleeping right now, though."

"Well, that's good," Grace nodded, looking relieved. "He's been through a lot, and he's going to need all the rest he can get if he's going to recover anytime soon."

"Kate's with him right now. I can show you where they are," Ana offered, and she began to lead Grace out of the lobby and down the hallway toward the ER.

"Why isn't Christian coming with us?" Grace glanced over her shoulder, frowning when she saw that Christian was still standing in the lobby with Taylor.

"Um… he's not allowed back in the ER," Ana said awkwardly. "He got into a fight with one of the doctors and he got thrown out by security."

"Really?" Grace stared at Ana in surprise. "Was it because of Elliot?"

"No," Ana said. Glancing around the relatively empty ER to make sure they weren't going to be overheard, Ana pulled Grace off to the side of the hallway and explained to her the situation regarding the little girl who was brought into the emergency room right after Elliot was. Grace listened intently, a serious expression on her face.

"…I'm worried about him, Grace," Ana admitted after she finished telling her everything. "I mean, I know Christian's come so far from the man I met only a few months ago, but what if seeing that little girl made him revert back to all those terrible memories he had from when he was in the same situation? He's never acted out like that before."

"Christian has always been a bit hotheaded, dear," Grace said reassuringly. "Especially when it involves people or issues that are close to his heart. And he's already had an emotionally-trying night, what with his brother being attacked and taken to the emergency room and everything. I doubt there's anything serious for you to worry about, dear."

"So you don't think he's reverting, then?" Ana asked anxiously. They resumed walking down the hallway toward where Elliot's bed was.

"No, sweetheart. I'm sure he'll be alright in the morning," Grace said, and Ana felt reassured. "And if he's not, I'll have a few words with him and set him straight."

"Alright then," Ana couldn't help but smile.

The two of them approached Elliot's bed, where Elliot was still fast asleep with Kate sitting at his bedside, gazing at him in concern. Beside them was the bed containing the little girl, and she was much more docile than Ana had seen her earlier. She now lay huddled under a thin blue blanket with a child-sized oxygen mask strapped to her face. Her big brown eyes stared at Ana as she and Grace approached.

"Is that her?" Grace asked quietly, and Ana nodded.

"Yeah. I'm not sure who she is, though," she gazed at the girl sadly. "I hope she'll be alright."

The little girl continued to just stare at Ana, those large brown eyes conveying no emotion whatsoever. Ana's heart completely broke for her.

"You and Christian go head on home," Grace said, placing her hand gently on Ana's forearm, and Ana turned to look at her. "I'll be here with Elliot and Kate tonight, and I can keep an eye on this little girl for you too, if you'd like."

Ana stared at her. "Really? I mean, don't you need to sleep too?"

"I'll be fine, dear," Grace smiled. "I'm used to staying up long hours at a hospital anyway. You and Christian can come back tomorrow, so go and get a few hours' rest before coming back. Okay?"

"Okay," Ana smiled, and she couldn't resist pulling Grace into a big hug. "Thank you, Grace. For everything."

"You're welcome, dear," Grace hugged her back before pulling away, smiling fondly at her. "Have a good night… and be patient with that thick-headed husband of yours."

"I will, Grace," Ana chuckled.

She turned to leave the ER, but right before she did, she glanced one last time at the little girl. She was still staring at Ana, as if transfixed by her, and Ana offered her a small smile and a wave. The girl didn't respond, not that Ana had expected her to, and after a moment Ana turned around and walked out of the emergency room without looking back.

The little girl continued to stare at the exit doors long after Ana had left through them, as if waiting for her to come back.

* * *

The ride back to Escala was oppressively silent - Christian still seemed to be in a bit of a funk, and Ana had long since given up trying to get him to talk to her. They just gazed out opposite windows throughout the car ride, and it was with some relief when they finally pulled into the underground parking garage of their building. She and Christian stepped out of the car and into the waiting elevator that went up to the top floor.

The penthouse was completely dark when they entered through the foyer, and so Ana walked over and flicked on a lamp in the great room, sending soft light throughout the spacious penthouse. Ana had expected Christian to head straight for the staircase toward their bedroom, but instead he turned the other way to head into the kitchen. Ana watched him pick up a crystal decanter of Armagnac and a matching glass from near the wine rack.

Ana frowned at him. _He wants a drink? Now?_ "Christian - it's late, and we've had a long night. We should go to bed."

Christian ignored her as he poured himself a glass, and Ana had just about had enough. She marched up to him, reached over and took the glass of Armagnac right out of his hand before he could even bring it to his lips.

"Hey!" he said, annoyed as she held it away from him.

"Stop giving me the silent treatment," Ana said, feeling angry. "I didn't do anything wrong!"

Christian glared back at her for a moment before his expression softened. He let out a sigh. "I know you didn't," he said quietly. "I'm not angry at you, Ana, I'm just…" he hesitated, trying to figure out his own feelings. He shook his head. "I'm angry at myself."

Ana stared at him, her demeanor softening as well. "Why are you angry at yourself?"

Christian sat down on a stool beside the kitchen island with a sigh, furrowing his brow as he stared down at the countertop. "I lost control," he said after a moment, looking back up at Ana with a pained expression. "I've spent my whole life trying to control what makes me weak, but tonight… apparently just looking at a kid who reminds me of myself makes me go completely apeshit and attack a doctor. Why is it that every time I think I have a firm grasp on my life, one tiny random event makes my ironclad control crumble like sand? Am I really that weak?"

Ana looked at him, a sympathetic expression on her face. "Christian, feeling emotion doesn't make you weak," she said, setting the glass of Armagnac down on the table and walking around the island toward him. "You're only human. And you experienced empathy for another human who was in a similar situation that you'd been in." She wrapped her arms around his neck, and his hands automatically went to her waist. "That's not a weakness, Christian - fighting to help someone else in need is never a weakness. You were being strong for that little girl, and I'm proud of you for that."

Christian simply stared up at Ana with an unreadable expression. After a moment, he pulled her closer to him before burying his face into her chest, wrapping his arms around her waist and hugging her tightly. Ana smiled before wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him back, enjoying this closeness with her husband.

"Let's get you to bed, Mrs. Grey," he muttered after a moment, and Ana felt him kiss the tops of her breasts peeking out from her off-the-shoulder gown. She smiled.

"Lead the way, Mr. Grey," she said flirtatiously, pulling away slightly but leaving her arms around his neck. Christian grinned salaciously at her, and in one swift move stood up and lifted her into his arms bridal style, causing her to squeal in surprise and delight. He began to walk out of the kitchen and toward the staircase leading up to their bedroom, leaving the Armagnac on the counter behind them.

* * *

 **~the next morning~**

Ana slowly blinked open her eyes as the Saturday morning light shone through the tall floor-to-ceiling windows. She was still groggy from sleep, but even in her half-awake state she could feel the softness of the down comforter around her naked body and Christian's hard masculine body spooning her from behind, his arm wrapped around her waist. She snuggled into his embrace, feeling remarkably comfortable.

"Mmmm," Christian groaned from behind her, shifting slightly as he began to rouse from his sleep. She felt his arms tighten around her waist slightly while his scratchy beard tickled the crook of her neck, kissing it.

Ana giggled. "Why, good morning, Mr. Grey."

"Good morning to you, Mrs. Grey," Christian grinned back, his voice still hoarse with sleep. He suddenly let out a yawn, lifting his arm up and stretching as he did so. "What time is it?"

"Um… a little after seven," Ana glanced at her phone on the bedside table before rubbing her eyes tiredly. "Do you have to work this morning?"

"Yeah, I have a teleconference with the CFO of one of my subsidiaries at eight," Christian rubbed his eyes too, trying to wake himself up more. "Hopefully it won't take more than a few hours."

"That's good. I have a few errands I wanted to run this morning anyway," Ana said, yawning. "So you think you'll be done by noon today?"

"I should be. Why?"

"I was hoping we could go back to the hospital around lunch today and visit Elliot," Ana said, sounding almost hesitant in her suggestion.

Christian didn't respond right away, and after a moment he grimaced. "Will I even be allowed back in that hospital? I'm pretty sure they'll remember me as the crazy guy who attacked a doctor last night."

Ana couldn't help but snicker at him. "I'm sure it'll be fine - Taylor and I spoke with the security guards at the hospital last night, and they said you'll be allowed back in the ER today since your brother is still a patient there. As long as you don't attack anyone else, it'll be fine."

Christian smiled slightly, but his eyes still looked a bit troubled. Ana knew a part of him was still worried about the idea of returning to the hospital and possibly seeing that little girl again.

 _My poor fifty shades._

Ana leaned over and pressed a kiss to Christian's cheek. "Come on - let's take a shower and get dressed. We have a big day ahead of us."

Christian looked at Ana and his eyes softened into a smile. "Yes, ma'am."

Ana giggled as Christian grabbed at her waist, tickling her, and the two of them hopped out of bed and hurried into the en suite so they could shower together.

* * *

Later on in the morning, as Christian was occupied with his call, Ana and Sawyer headed out of Escala to run the errands she had planned to do. They ran to the bank to fill out a few necessary forms for her and Christian's joint bank accounts before heading over to the local flower shop to find a bouquet of flowers and a get well card for Elliot. She and Christian hadn't had a chance to do it last night since they had been coming from a charity dinner when they got the call about his injury.

As Ana wandered through the flower shop, searching for the perfect bouquet of flowers, she noticed a shelf full of plushy stuffed animals near the store window. The stuffed animals all ranged in size, from tiny little beanie babies to large pillow-sized animals, but Ana immediately spotted a cute plushy elephant that was about the size of her head. She picked it up, and decided to purchase it along with the flowers and the card.

Elliot probably didn't care much for stuffed animals, but Ana was sure the little girl would like it.

After Ana was finished with her errands, she and Sawyer swung back around to Escala to grab Christian and headed back to the Overlake Hospital Medical Center. The two of them rode mostly in silence, though it wasn't the cold silence from last night - Ana simply gazed out the window, lost in her thoughts, and when she glanced over at Christian, she saw him doing the same thing. She hoped he wasn't stressing out about how he was going to act around that little girl again - Ana was confident he was going to be okay, like Grace had assured her last night, but she didn't want Christian to worry about it too much.

They finally arrived at the hospital, and Christian carried the bouquet of flowers and card in while Ana clutched the plushy elephant in her hand. The two of them made their way through the ER toward where Elliot's bed was.

"Hey guys," Elliot smiled and waved as Christian and Ana approached him. He definitely looked a lot better since last night - more color had returned to his cheeks, and his eyes shone with his usual good humor. Grace and Kate were sitting at Elliot's bedside, not looking quite as chipper as him, but smiling at Christian and Ana all the same.

"Hey Lelliot," Christian grinned, setting the bouquet of flowers on the small table at the end of his bed. "How're you feeling today?"

"A lot better," Elliot grinned, gesturing to his bandaged arm. "The doctors say I could probably go home sometime later today."

"That's great!" Ana smiled.

"The doctors here may say that, but _I_ think he should be admitted for further evaluation," Grace said pointedly, and Kate nodded in agreement. Elliot rolled his eyes.

"Mom - we've been through this. I'm _fine_."

"Elliot, you could have had a concussion," Kate insisted. "And the doctors here were stupid enough to give you opiates without checking your head first. Something seriously bad could have happened!"

"But nothing bad _did_ happen," Elliot countered. "I woke up this morning just fine. That means my head is okay and my arm can heal so I can go home."

"You don't know if you're fine, dear," Grace said. "Not until the doctors here run a few extra tests…"

"Stop being so overprotective, Mom - I'm _fine_ …"

As Elliot, Grace and Kate argued about Elliot's medical care, Ana turned to look at the bed beside him. The little girl was still there, except now she looked slightly better: her dirty face and hair had been washed and cleaned, and the nurses had changed her out of that tattered old t-shirt and into a child-sized green hospital gown. She wasn't alone, either - a brunette woman in a pantsuit was sitting at her bedside, filling out a form on a clipboard.

Ana hesitantly approached the girl's bed, the plushy elephant still clutched in her hand. "Excuse me?"

The woman looked up from her form, straightening her glasses as she gazed at Ana. "Can I help you?"

"Are you this girl's mother?"

The woman set her pen down on the clipboard. "No, I'm her social worker. Why?"

"Oh. Um…" Ana looked awkwardly over at the little girl, who was staring at her. "I'm sorry, my husband and I happened to be here last night when this girl was brought in by the paramedics. I just wanted to know if she's okay."

The woman softened slightly and gave her a smile. "I see. Yes, she seems to be relatively healthy, despite everything she's been through - just a little malnourished, from what the doctors have told me."

Ana nodded. "That's good." She glanced back at the little girl and offered her a smile. "Hi there."

The girl didn't say anything, and Ana sat herself down in the empty chair at the girl's bedside, opposite the social worker woman. She held up the plushy elephant for the girl to see. "I've got something for you."

The little girl stared at the elephant, not making a move, and so Ana inched it closer to her face until its trunk tickled her nose. The girl suddenly smiled and giggled as she reached up and cuddled the stuffed animal in her arms.

"That's very kind of you," the social worker woman smiled at Ana, who looked up at her. "I've been here all morning and I haven't seen her smile once."

"It was nothing," Ana blushed and grinned slightly. "I'm Ana, by the way."

"Colleen," the woman reached over the bed to shake Ana's hand, which she did. "Nice to meet you."

"You too," Ana said. She felt someone move behind her, and looked up to see Christian now standing behind her chair. "…And this is my husband, Christian."

"Oh… nice to meet you," Colleen said to Christian, a small blush creeping onto her cheeks when she took in his handsome features.

"You too," Christian said, barely acknowledging Colleen as he looked at the little girl on the bed, who was now playing with her new plushy elephant.

"Colleen is this girl's social worker," Ana explained to Christian before turning back to the woman. "Do you know the girl's name?"

"It's Lucia," Colleen said, turning back to look at Ana. "She was actually a Jane Doe up until about an hour ago, but Child Services managed to dig up some records of her at a homeless shelter near where she was found. Aside from that, though, we don't have very much information - not even a birth certificate."

"Who's covering her hospital bill?" Christian suddenly asked, still gazing at Lucia. Colleen looked at him in surprise.

"Um… well, since she's a ward of the state, technically our taxes are paying for her stay here."

Ana looked up at Christian, and saw the serious expression on his face. His gray eyes met Ana's, and they seemed to have a silent, mutual understanding… Christian's hand went to Ana's shoulder, and she reached over to place her own hand on his.

"We'll cover her medical bill," Ana said, turning back to Colleen, who looked at her in shock.

"Really?" Colleen asked after a moment, unsure if she understood correctly.

"Yes," Christian said firmly. "Whatever her medical costs are, we'll cover them. Money won't be an issue."

Colleen looked utterly shocked for a moment, staring at him, before managing to compose herself a bit and clearing her throat. "Oh… well, that's very generous of you. I'll um… I'll go talk to someone in Administration right now."

She got to her feet and walked away, leaving Christian and Ana alone with Lucia. Lucia was still playing with her new stuffed elephant, looking relatively happy and unaware of what the two strangers at her bedside had done for her. Ana glanced back up at Christian and gave him a soft smile - Christian only responded with a grimace and a squeeze on her shoulder. Ana knew what helping Lucia meant for Christian, and she couldn't help but be proud of him for doing this for her.

* * *

 **A/N: Hope you all like that! If you did, please leave a review :)**

 **If you aren't already, please follow my pinterest board for this story! The URL is www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	4. Decisions

**A/N: Thank you for all the lovely reviews and messages! Enjoy this next chapter :)**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 4: Decisions**

Grace and Kate managed to convince Elliot to take just one more test, and so he ended up staying at the hospital an extra night for a CT scan to be done on his head. Luckily, the doctors couldn't find any signs of a concussion or any lasting damage from the attack, meaning Elliot was cleared to be discharged soon after it was done. As he was finishing up paperwork and waiting for the nurse to bring him his discharge papers, however, his friends Roger, Barry, and Craig all stopped by to visit him. The latter two hadn't been there during the attack, since they had left in Barry's car before it happened, but they still felt responsible for not being there to help. They apologized profusely to Elliot, who simply brushed off their apologies as needless.

"I'm completely fine guys - the doctors say I'll have full use of my arm back by next Friday. Although I think maybe we'll skip drinks at the bar and just have a few beers at my place." He grinned, and the other guys couldn't help but smile back.

Lucia was not going to be discharged anytime soon, however. Since she was having her healthcare being paid for by Christian and Ana, the doctors now wanted to run a whole battery tests on her to ensure she was completely healthy. Grace suggested she be transferred to the nearby Children's Hospital, since the medical professionals there would be more equipped to help her should there be any serious complications. Christian and Ana agreed, mainly because they trusted Grace's judgement on this more than they trusted their own.

"Do you think we're doing the right thing?" Christian asked Ana as they watched the EMTs strap Lucia into a gurney that looked far too big for her tiny frame. "I mean, we don't even know this girl, and yet we're paying for her medical bills and shuttling her between hospitals."

"We _are_ doing the right thing," Ana said insistently. "This girl has had a rough life, but you and I are able to make a difference, at least with her medical care… don't you think that would matter a lot to someone like her?"

Christian didn't answer - his eyes were glued to the little girl as she was being pushed away on the gurney by the paramedics. Ana knew he was remembering the time when he was in her position, alone and afraid, with no one to help him in his time of need. He probably would have welcomed the kindness of a good samaritan.

"Christian - Ana," Colleen suddenly approached them with a couple clipboards in her hands. "Sorry, but I have some more forms for you to sign."

Christian and Ana accepted the papers from Colleen, which were just more transfer forms, and they signed them as they listened to her explain once again what was going to happen to Lucia during and after her stay at Children's Hospital. While Christian and Ana were both grateful to Colleen for helping them with everything, they found themselves wondering if there could've been a better way to help Lucia without having to jump through so many regulation hoops.

"I know, this is like the millionth thing you signed today," Colleen said sympathetically, as if she knew what Christian and Ana were thinking as they scrawled their signatures on the transfer forms. "But I promise these are the last ones until Lucia is discharged from Children's Hospital, or when she's assigned to a foster family."

"It's fine," Ana smiled as she and Christian handed the papers back to her. "We understand."

Colleen smiled back at them. "Well, I know I've said it before, but I think what you're doing for her is wonderful. Do you mind if I ask - are you two parents?"

"No, we aren't," Ana said, shaking her head.

"We actually just got married a couple months ago," Christian said, a note of pride in his voice as he slipped his arm around Ana's waist. She looked up at him with a loving smile, and he smiled back.

"Well, congratulations," Colleen said sincerely. "Still in the honeymoon phase, I take it?"

Christian chuckled as Ana let out a giggle. "Yeah, pretty much."

"Well, I know you two probably have a lot of life plans ahead of you," Colleen said understandingly. "But, as a social worker, I feel it's important to let you know that we are always looking for new foster parents to come in and take care of children who are still waiting to be adopted. Young couples such as yourselves would certainly find it to be a rewarding venture."

Ana and Christian glanced awkwardly at each other - neither of them had ever discussed the idea of being foster parents before, so it was a little weird to discuss with Colleen at the moment.

"We're just taking this whole thing with Lucia one step at a time," Christian said to Colleen after a second. "I think we're only committing ourselves to paying for her hospital bill at the moment."

Colleen nodded. "That's fine. Just know that the option to become foster parents is always on the table."

Christian and Ana simply nodded, and at that moment an EMT approached them to say that the ambulance was ready to transfer Lucia to the new hospital. Colleen quickly pulled out a business card and handed it over to Christian and Ana, imploring them to call her if they had any questions regarding Lucia's care. They agreed, and the three of them said goodbye before parting ways, Ana and Christian still thinking about what Colleen had said to them.

* * *

Seattle Children's Hospital was about a million times nicer than the previous hospital they were at, mainly because Lucia was put into her own private room instead of being stuck in a crowded ER. The wallpaper in her room was a light yellow color with pictures of boats along the molding, and there was a large window dominating the north wall, overlooking the city of Seattle. The room had a large HD television, a couch, a leather armchair, and even a small shelf containing lots of toys for Lucia to play with.

In addition to her new room, Lucia also had a new pediatrician named Alianna Singh. While initially Christian and Ana wanted Grace to be the girl's doctor, Grace had her own patients at her own hospital to tend with. She knew Dr. Singh personally, however, and assured Christian and Ana she was one of the best people to be treating Lucia.

"First of all, we plan on running a few standard blood tests, and if those reveal any underlying issues, we'll treat her for that," Dr. Singh explained to Christian and Ana after Lucia was settled into her bed. Dr. Singh was an older Indian woman with long gray hair in a low chignon, but her sweet and loving personality reminded Ana a lot of Grace. "So far, though, I don't think she's exhibited any serious medical problems, but we're going to be safe and test her anyway."

"Thank you," Christian said as Ana nodded.

Dr. Singh closed her file folder before turning to smile at Lucia, who was lying in the hospital bed beside them. "She is a sweet girl. I'm sure I will very much enjoy having her as my patient… isn't that right, Lucia?"

Lucia didn't respond - Ana and Christian weren't entirely sure if she could speak, since neither of them had heard her say a word to anyone. She simply stared up at Dr. Singh with her large brown eyes, clutching in her arms the stuffed elephant Ana had given her the other day. Ana and Christian looked back up at the doctor.

"She's not very talkative," Ana said apologetically. "She couldn't even tell the doctors over at the other hospital her name."

"It's not uncommon for children who have undergone abuse to exhibit psychological symptoms like that," Dr. Singh said knowledgeably. "We actually have a child psychologist on staff here, Dr. Kent, who can maybe work with her a little."

"Sure," Ana said gratefully. She discreetly slipped her hand through Christian's elbow, knowing he was probably a bit affected by Dr. Singh talking about young children being abused.

"I'll call a nurse to get Lucia's blood sample, and afterward you two could probably head on home. Just give me a call if you have any questions."

"Will do," Christian said, and Dr. Singh smiled before turning to leave. Once she was gone, Ana looked back up at Christian.

"You okay?" she asked worriedly, and Christian looked at her before letting out a sigh.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said. "It just feels strange thinking there's another person who is going through what I did all those years ago."

"I know," Ana said sympathetically. She turned and walked over to Lucia's bedside, sitting down on the edge of it. "I'm sure it's not easy thinking about all that stuff, especially since it happened to you when you were younger, but in the end, it's worth it if we get to help a little girl in need."

Ana looked down at Lucia, who gazed back up at her innocently. Lucia's large brown eyes, long straight black hair and thin, pale face gave her an almost doll-like appearance, and Ana put her arm around Lucia's shoulders, smiling lovingly down at her.

Christian couldn't help but feel his heart swell when looking at the scene in front of him - while he had always thought Ana was beautiful, her acting so sweet and caring to Lucia had its own special kind of beauty to it. He couldn't explain it, but it was nice.

"It's not as bad as I thought," Christian said after a moment, and Ana looked up at him. "Talking about my past, I mean… it's not as hard as it used to be. I know I thought I had reverted a bit when I attacked that doctor, but I also know that since you've come into my life and my nightmares have gone away for the most part, things have gotten a lot easier. My childhood can still be painful to think about at times, but I know my life has gotten infinitely better since then, and I'm able to focus on that more than my past. And her," he nodded to the little girl on the bed. "I like to think helping her helps me too."

Ana stared at Christian for a second before her face broke out into a smile. "I think that's one of the sweetest things you've ever said, Christian."

Christian returned her smile, his heart pounding in his chest. Ana always had a way of making him feel at peace with himself, and he knew he was one lucky son of a bitch to have her as his wife. Christian walked forward and leaned down to kiss her deeply on the lips, cupping her face in his hands as he did so. Ana kissed him back, smiling against him.

At that moment, a nurse knocked on the door to take Lucia's blood sample, and Christian and Ana broke apart. Lucia hadn't made a sound since she had been brought into the room, but the frightened look on her face as she watched the nurse walking in with her needles and blood sample kit was evident. Ana simply held onto Lucia's hand, reassuring her once again that everything was going to be okay.

* * *

"Do you want kids?"

Ana had been gazing idly out the car window as Taylor drove them back to Escala when Christian suddenly asked her that question. She blinked before turning to look back at him, surprised.

"Uh, what?" she asked, though she was sure she had understood what he said.

"I was just thinking about earlier…" Christian said hesitantly. "I saw the way you were acting around Lucia, and how much you were doting on her and stuff. Are kids something you might want to have someday?"

Ana shrugged. "Yeah, I suppose. As long as I have them with you, I'd want kids someday. But that probably won't be for awhile - I mean, I'm not even twenty-two yet."

"I've never thought about being a father," Christian admitted, frowning to himself. "It's never really felt like an option for me. Especially with my past…" he trailed off, not elaborating, although Ana knew what he was trying to say.

"Your past is behind you," she said firmly. "It doesn't have to define you, Christian - like what you were saying earlier in the hospital room, dealing with everything from your past has gotten a lot easier. You already know that you're capable of moving on… and for the record, I think you'd make a great dad someday." she added with a smile.

Christian smiled back at her. "And you'd make an excellent mother, Anastasia Grey."

Ana giggled before rolling her eyes. "Colleen, that social worker woman, thought we were already parents. Isn't that crazy?"

Christian chuckled. "I know - I almost laughed out loud when she said that."

"And then she asked us if we wanted to be foster parents…" Ana shook her head, smiling at the very notion.

"I know. But it sort of makes sense that she asked," Christian said fairly. "We're already helping that little girl out financially, so it wouldn't be a far leap for us to consider taking her in as a foster child."

"That's true," Ana nodded. "But honestly, would you ever consider becoming a foster parent?"

"I don't know," Christian said truthfully. "Would you?"

Ana didn't answer right away - Christian looked at her, and noticed she had her brow furrowed as she thought about her answer. After a moment, she shook her head.

"It's ridiculous," she insisted. "People like us couldn't be foster parents… for one thing, we both work full time jobs at Grey House and Grey Publishing… and Child Services would have to inspect our home, so our playroom is probably going to arouse a lot of suspicion with them…"

Christian nodded, conceding. "That's true," he said, but left it at that.

Neither of them spoke for the rest of the trip home. Christian knew Ana was thinking over the same thing he was - that maybe, despite their reasons against it, becoming foster parents wasn't as crazy a notion as they had previously thought.

* * *

 **~One week later~**

"Knock knock," Grace smiled upon entering through the open door of Lucia's hospital room. She was carrying a saran wrapped plate of chocolate chip cookies in her hands.

"Hi Mom," Christian smiled in greeting. He and Ana were sitting next to Lucia's bedside - she was looking much better than from a short week ago. Her pale complexion had more color in it, and her brown eyes looked much brighter.

"Hi Lucia," Grace smiled at the little girl before sitting down in the extra chair at her bedside, putting her plate of cookies on the end table. "She's looking much better than when she first came in."

"I know," Ana smiled proudly. "She's been eating a lot since she's been here, and the doctors said she's responding well to antibiotics."

"That's great," Grace said approvingly. "So what problems did the doctors find?"

"Nothing too serious," Christian said. "The worst thing she had was a urinary tract infection that had apparently been left untreated for months. The doctors noticed she wasn't going to the bathroom at all, and she started flipping out when they tried to put a catheter in her."

Ana grimaced sadly at the memory of that incident from only a few days ago, when Lucia's terrified, pain-filled screams filled the entire hospital floor as the doctors and nurses tried to hold her down. Ana just wanted to pull her into her arms and take the pain away.

"And what about her haphephobia?" Grace inquired. "Are the doctors trying to help her with that?"

"Well, we spoke with the child psychologist here," Christian said, exchanging a glance with Ana. "He said she likely doesn't have haphephobia, at least to the extent that I had it. However, the doctor did say she seems to have an aversion to aggression, more so than a child her age should have."

Grace frowned. "So they do actually think she was abused?"

Ana nodded sadly. "Yeah, it really looks like it."

As hard as it was thinking about an innocent child being abused, it seemed even more difficult to think that that child was Lucia. Christian and Ana had really come to care about her over the past week or so - even though Lucia still couldn't speak, she could still convey a lot through her expressions and gestures. She could nod and shake her head, point to things in the room, and even smile from time to time. It was clear she had grown very attached to Ana and Christian - whenever they came to visit her (which was at least once a day), her eyes would light up excitedly and she would immediately start showing them the toys she was playing with or the food she was eating. It was simply adorable, and Ana and Christian both found themselves enjoying their visits with her more and more as the week progressed.

Lucia really was starting to have quite an effect on their lives.

"Hello," Dr. Singh now walked into the room, smiling at them all. "Hello Dr. Trevelyan."

"Dr. Singh," Grace greeted her with a smile. "How are you?"

"I'm very well, thank you. I just wanted to come in here and tell Christian and Ana the good news about Lucia's condition." Dr. Singh looked down at her chart. "It appears as if her UTI has completely cleared up after one round of the antibiotics, and she should be well enough to be discharged by the end of the day today."

Ana knew she should have been pleased by this news, but she couldn't help but feel a bit sad her and Christian's visits with her were now over. When she glanced over at Christian, his expression mirrored her own.

"Well, that's wonderful news," Grace said sincerely, smiling widely. "I'd hoped she would be healthy enough to be let out of the hospital sometime soon. I actually made her some chocolate chip cookies if she was feeling better - is it alright if she has one?"

"Of course it is," Dr. Singh smiled. "I'm sure that'll be a nice treat compared to all the yucky hospital food she's had to eat."

Ana and Christian laughed as Grace unwrapped her plate of chocolate chip cookies and started passing them around to everyone. They looked delicious, and Lucia immediately perked up when she detected the scent of chocolate under her nose.

"Here you go, Lucia," Grace smiled sweetly down at her as she handed her a cookie, and Lucia took it eagerly.

"Can you say thank you, Lucia?" Ana asked her, knowing she wasn't going to say a word.

There was a brief moment of silence between all of them before Lucia's tiny, subdued voice carried throughout the entire room: "'Dank you."

Everyone froze and stared at her, shocked at what they had just heard.

"Oh my gosh," Ana brought her hand to her mouth.

"Did she just say thank you?" Christian turned to Grace and Dr. Singh, as if wanting them to confirm it for him.

"She did," Grace nodded, smiling widely.

"Sweetheart, can you say that again?" Dr. Singh asked Lucia. "Can you say 'thank you'?"

"'Dank you," she said again, her quiet voice a little stronger than before. She shyly began eating her cookie, aware that all the adults were still looking at her.

Ana turned to Christian with a huge beaming smile on her face, and Christian smiled back. After a week of believing this girl was so traumatized by her abusers that she couldn't even speak, she surprised them all by saying her first words right in front of them. She was finally starting to recover, and there suddenly felt like there was so much more hope for her future.

Ana and Christian continued to look at each other, and it seemed like their silent communication confirmed what they truly wanted to do. What they had been thinking about all week, but had been too nervous to explore any further.

They had finally made their decision.

* * *

"Colleen?"

Colleen glanced up from the papers she was looking over at the nurse's station to see Christian and Ana walking toward her.

"Christian - Ana," she greeted them, smiling. "How's Lucia?"

"She's great," Ana smiled, glancing up at Christian. "We, um… we wanted to ask you something."

"Of course."

Christian wrapped his arm around Ana's waist. "Has Lucia been assigned to a foster family yet?"

Colleen thought for a second. "Um… I don't think so. Why?"

Ana and Christian glanced at each other before looking back at her, their expressions torn between anxious and excited. "Because we would like to take her in as a foster child."

Colleen stared at the two of them for a moment before a large smile broke out across her face. "I'll get the paperwork."

* * *

 **A/N: Yay! Hope you all liked that chapter! If you did, please leave a review :)**

 **You can follow this story on my Pinterest board at www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	5. Adjusting to Home

**A/N: Thank you for all your reviews and support! I hope you enjoy this next chapter!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5: Adjusting to Home**

Christian and Ana had rather hoped the licensing process to become foster parents wouldn't take any more than a few hours, but unfortunately they were wrong – as it turned out, there was a whole process to it. They needed to be interviewed and trained by a representative from Child Services, consent to a background check and a health screening, and (as Ana had predicted) allow their home to be inspected by a DCFS official. All this, in addition to their daily work life, meant that it would be the better part of a week before they could be officially licensed foster parents and bring Lucia into their care.

"Are you still sure you want to go through with all this?" Ana asked Christian nervously for about the twentieth time that day. The two of them were sitting in the great room at Escala, having just gone through their first tedious day of processing at Child Services.

"For the millionth time, _yes_ ," Christian said amusedly. "I want to help Lucia just as much as you do, baby. I realize the process is long and difficult, but hopefully, by the end it'll be worth it."

"I just don't want you to feel like I'm forcing you to do this for me," Ana confessed, looking nervous. "I know you want to help Lucia, but I also know I'm asking you to give up a lot for this…"

"Stop," Christian said firmly, taking her hand in his. "I've made up my mind about this, Ana - I want to do this as long as you do. You're not asking me to give up anything."

Ana smiled gratefully before squeezing his hand back. "I just know this is a big decision for us, even if it is temporary, and I want to be sure we're both completely on board."

"I am," Christian said, smiling. "We're married now, baby - we're a team, no matter what."

Ana smiled widely back before leaning in and kissing him fully on the lips. Christian kissed her back, the powerful love he had for his wife filling his heart.

 _I would do anything for her._

Ana was the first to pull away, and she did so slowly, her eyes fluttering open to gaze into his eyes. She looked hesitant. "You do know what we have to do, though, right?"

Christian sighed, grimacing. "Yeah, I do."

Since a DCFS official had to inspect Escala within the next day or so, Ana and Christian had agreed to clear out the playroom of all their sex toys, canes and whips before the person came by. While Ana and Christian didn't think they necessarily needed the BDSM aspect of their sexual relationship anymore, it still felt a bit strange getting rid of such a significant part of Christian's past.

The playroom had basically represented Christian's entire life for years… and now he and Ana were going to get rid of it. This moment felt heavy with significance.

Ana gave Christian a small smile before taking his hand again and pulling him to his feet. Hand-in-hand, they began to walk up the stairs toward the playroom.

They opened the door and stepped inside before glancing around the whole area. They took in the familiar four-poster bed, the St. Andrew's cross, and the walls filled with neatly-arranged canes and whips. As usual, the scent of citrus and polished wood filled their nostrils upon entering the room.

"I think we mostly just need to get rid of all the stuff on the walls," Christian said after a moment, scratching his chin thoughtfully. "We could probably leave the bed. The whips and the canes we should definitely get rid of… and everything in the drawers over there."

"Yeah, the butt drawer definitely has to go," Ana said firmly, and Christian laughed. "What about the St. Andrew's cross?"

"That can be disassembled, but it's still pretty heavy. Taylor and I can carry it out last along with all the shelving, and you and I can work on gathering up and throwing away all the toys."

For the next half-hour or so, Ana and Christian worked on gathering all of the whips and canes and throwing them into a large pile on top of the four poster bed. Christian grabbed a couple large black duffel bags and threw them inside, and Ana found a cardboard box to toss all the sex toys from the drawers into. She couldn't help but laugh at how ridiculous it looked when she was done - she had a box literally filled to the brim with colorful dildos, vibrators and anal beads.

"Aw, I liked this one," Christian pouted playfully, picking up a silver vibrator from on top of the pile of sex toys in the box. "You and I had so much fun with it."

Ana laughed and smacked him playfully on the arm. "Baby, we agreed to get rid of _all_ of this stuff."

"Yeah, but still…" Christian gave her a hopeful smile. "Even couples in vanilla relationships like to play around with these. Can't we just keep this one in our bedroom?"

Ana blushed, but she couldn't help but smile and roll her eyes at how adorably hopeful he was. "If we hide it _very_ well," she said, crossing her arms firmly. "I don't want to risk anyone finding anything incriminating in our home."

Christian's smile was big and genuine. "Thank you, baby," he said happily, leaning forward and kissing her on the lips. "I'll go put it in our closet… right next to my ties," he whispered against her lips with a small wink. Ana giggled and blushed.

Finally, after a couple hours of hard work, the playroom was completely empty except for the four poster bed, a couple empty shelves and the dark red walls. Ana had found a blocked off window near the back of the room, and once she opened the curtains, light poured in and filled the whole space with beautiful sunshine. Without all the sex toys and the distinct citrus wood scent, the room now seemed less like a sex dungeon and more like a guest room.

"There," Ana said once they were completely finished. She and Christian stood in the middle of the empty room, gazing around as Christian wrapped his arm Ana's waist. "How's it look?"

"Like a room," Christian said, glancing around. He smiled. "I like it."

"Me too," Ana giggled. "We could probably use it as a guest room now when my dad comes to visit."

"Um, how about no," Christian scrunched his nose, looking horrified, and Ana laughed fully.

"Yeah, maybe you're right."

Christian shook his head, chuckling incredulously, before turning back around, his arm still around Ana's waist. The two of them walked out of the room together before closing the door behind them.

* * *

The next few days were just as hectic as Christian and Ana had expected, with constant inquiries from social services, setting up Lucia's bedroom, purchasing toys and furniture for her, child-proofing the penthouse and, on top of all that, scheduling work around everything. Both Christian and Ana were planning on taking a week off of work to spend time with Lucia and help her get settled at Escala, which meant they both had a lot to get done before they did that.

Finally, on Sunday morning, all was said and done, and Ana and Christian drove down to the St. Mary's Children's Home to pick Lucia up. It had been the better part of a week since they had last seen her, but the moment she stepped outside with one of the sisters to greet them, it was clear she remembered them. It was actually pretty heartwarming to see the hopeful look in her normally expressionless eyes when she found out she was actually going to be going home with them.

"She hasn't let go of that elephant all week," the sister said to Christian as they watched Ana buckle Lucia up in her carseat inside their Audi SUV, Lucia clutching tightly onto her plushy elephant. Taylor was busy packing up her few belongings in the trunk of the car. "She hardly spoke a word when she was here, but whenever we asked her where she got her elephant, she would always respond with _angel_."

Christian couldn't help but smile - yes, there was definitely some truth to that. "My wife actually gave her that elephant a couple weeks ago. She and I have grown very fond of Lucia."

"I'm glad to hear it," the sister smiled warmly. "That little girl definitely deserves a family who loves her - with everything she's been through, I pray that she at least will have that in her life."

Christian didn't say anything to that, since it looked like Ana and Taylor were finally packed up and ready to go. They all said goodbye to the people at the children's home before getting into the SUV; Taylor began driving home while Christian and Ana sat in the backseat with Lucia, who was beginning to doze off in her carseat.

"Look at her," Ana whispered, smiling lovingly at Lucia drifting off to sleep while clutching her stuffed elephant in her arms. "How could anyone want to hurt such a sweet little thing?"

Christian smiled too, but his mind was a bit preoccupied. He couldn't help thinking about what the sister at the children's home had said - about Lucia having a family that loved her. Is that what he and Ana were doing? They had agreed to take her in as a foster child, and he wasn't regretting that decision, but could he and Ana be enough of a family for her? At least until another family came forward to adopt her?

Christian decided not to let himself worry about it too much yet as Taylor pulled the SUV into Escala's underground parking lot. He and Ana would cross that bridge when they came to it, and for now they could just try to adjust to having a young child under their care for the foreseeable future.

Lucia began to rouse from her sleep just as Taylor parked the car and Ana and Christian unbuckled their seatbelts. Ana unbuckled Lucia and picked her up in her arms, hoisting her up on her hip before sliding out of the car.

 _She makes it look so easy._

"You're pretty good at that," Christian said to Ana as she and him walked toward the elevators. Ana smiled, glancing at Lucia sitting on her hip.

"I babysat little kids a lot in high school," she said, a hint of humor in her voice. "So I guess I've got some experience in parenting already."

"Well, that's a relief," Christian said with a smile, and Ana giggled.

Ana and Christian rode the elevator up to the penthouse, Lucia still in Ana's arms. After a few moments, the car stopped, and they stepped out into the spacious foyer. Lucia's tiny innocent face turned in all directions as she stared at the opulence all around her - to an adult, Escala was pretty massive, but to a little girl like Lucia it was probably gargantuan.

"This is going to be your new home for now, Lucia," Ana explained to her as they walked into the great room. "This is where me and Mr. Christian live, and now you're going to live here too."

Lucia said nothing as she continued to gaze at the large room around them. Christian and Ana exchanged a glance.

"Should we show her her bedroom?" Christian suggested, shrugging.

"Okay," Ana agreed. "Come on, Lucia - wanna go see your bedroom?"

She silently nodded, and the three of them went up the stairs toward where Lucia's newly-furnished bedroom was. Christian and Ana had opted to utilize the guest room that was closest to the master bedroom for Lucia, just in case she had nightmares or something, and they would be readily available.

"Here we are," Ana opened the door to Lucia's bedroom and stepped inside, still carrying Lucia on her hip. Christian followed, closing the door behind them.

Ana and Gail had done most of the decorating for this room - not that Christian didn't want to help, but he knew he had terrible taste when it came to interior design, especially for decorating a child's bedroom. The walls of the room were their usual white color, but now had flowers and butterfly decals pasted to them. The adult-size bed had been replaced with one more appropriate for a child, with a lavender-colored comforter and green pillows. The dresser was now child-sized, and the blinds over the window had been replaced with purple tulle curtains. Christian thought the room looked really girly and garish, but if it suited Lucia, who was he to complain?

"So this is your bed," Ana set Lucia down on her feet but still held onto her hand. "Where you're going to sleep… and over here is your dresser… and over here is your closet where you keep all your clothes."

She led Lucia over to her walk-in closet and opened the door, revealing several racks of child-sized shirts and dresses. The floor of the closet contained dozens of pairs of shoes, ranging from tennis shoes to sandals, all lined up in neatly arranged rows.

"Every single morning, you and me are going to go into this closet and find you clothes to wear for the day," Ana explained, kneeling down so she was at the same level as Lucia. "You're going to get to wear new clothes every single day - how does that sound, Lucia?"

Lucia didn't respond - she merely stared up at the clothes in her closet as if transfixed by them. Christian could understand her feelings - he knew from personal experience that the simple idea of wearing new clothes everyday was sort of a foreign concept for children who were so used to spending day after day in the same filthy clothes. He remembered how weird he thought it was after the Grey's first adopted him that Grace had bathed him once a week and put him into new clothes every single day.

"It's almost lunchtime," Ana said, checking her watch as she stood back up. She looked over at Christian. "Do you want to show her the rest of the house, or do you think we should take her to the kitchen to eat right now?"

"Let's stop for lunch," Christian said. "Gail should be in the kitchen right now, and Lucia should be at least a little familiar with her if she's going to be staying."

"Alright," Ana turned to Lucia and picked her up in her arms. "C'mon sweetheart - are you hungry?"

"Yeah," she mumbled in her tiny voice, nodding her head. Christian and Ana smiled at each other before walking out of the bedroom and into the kitchen.

Taylor and Gail were in the kitchen, Gail having just finishing making some homemade mac and cheese for lunch. They both looked up when they heard Christian and Ana enter, and smiled when their eyes landed on Lucia.

"Why, hello there," Gail said sweetly to Lucia, who just stared back at her.

"Lucia, this is Mrs. Jones," Ana said to Lucia. "And over there is Mr. Taylor. Can you say hello?"

Instead of saying anything, Lucia buried her face in the crook of Ana's neck, clutching onto her tightly. Gail and Ana both 'awwed' in sympathy.

"I made you guys some mac and cheese for lunch, since I thought Lucia would like that." Gail smiled fondly at Lucia's hiding face. "I can make something else, though, if you'd like…"

"Mac and cheese sounds great," Ana insisted. "The doctors at Children's told us Lucia isn't lactose intolerant or anything, so it should be fine."

"Great - let me plate some up for you," Gail said, bustling away to the stove, where the pot of mac and cheese sat. Ana pulled out a chair at the breakfast bar that contained the child booster seat they had purchased earlier that week, and gently set Lucia down on it.

Once Gail had set their plates of food in front of them, they began to eat. Christian watched as Ana showed Lucia how to pick up her fork and scoop the mac and cheese into her mouth - he was pleased to see she was hungry, since she would eagerly shove the forkfuls of mac and cheese into her mouth, often times missing her mouth altogether. It was a little funny to watch, and Christian couldn't help but chuckle at her. Ana laughed as well, but she continued to patiently show Lucia how to properly eat her food, all the while wiping her messy face and hands.

Christian watched Ana as she doted over Lucia. He had joked about it with her earlier, but he really did think she was a natural at this - how did she do that? How could she make being a parent look so easy? Christian knew he was just as fond of Lucia as Ana was, but he was beginning to find his newfound foster parenting role to be very different from what he expected. He could never visualize himself doting on Lucia the same way Ana had been doing since they set foot in Escala.

Was there something wrong with him?

They finished up lunch, and Christian took their empty plates and cups into the kitchen to put them in the sink.

"I was thinking of taking Lucia back into her room and showing her all her new toys," Ana said, picking Lucia up from her chair. "What do you think, Christian?"

Christian glanced over at Ana and Lucia, both of whom were looking at him. Lucia had her index and middle fingers in her mouth, sucking on them as she stared at Christian with her wide brown eyes.

"I actually have some work I need to get done in my study," he said apologetically, knowing it wasn't a total lie. "Is it alright if I leave you guys alone for a while?"

"Of course," Ana said immediately, though she looked at Christian with an unreadable expression on her face. "Don't work too hard, okay?"

Christian smiled. "I won't," he said reassuringly. He walked forward and kissed Ana on the cheek before turning to Lucia. He lightly tapped the tip of her nose with his index finger, and she scrunched her nose in response. Ana giggled.

"Have fun, you two," Christian smiled as Ana and Lucia began to head toward the staircase together. He simply stood and watched them walk across the room and disappear around the corner.

* * *

 **Name: Lucia Meekaslav**

 **Age: 4**

 **DOB: Unknown**

 **Mother: Belinda Meekaslav ✝**

 **Father: Unknown**

 **Address: Compass Housing Alliance, Seattle, WA**

 **Social Security Number: Unknown**

Christian stared down at the piece of paper which contained the very scant information Welch had managed to dig up about Lucia. Christian had asked him to do this for him last week, before Lucia had come to live with them, but Welch had been having some trouble finding anything since there was so little to go on. He had managed to discover that Lucia's last name was Meekaslav, and that she had a deceased mother named Belinda (as indicated by the cross symbol by her name), and lived most of her life in a homeless shelter, but aside from that, there was very little else he found out. It was like Lucia barely existed.

 _Or was just a neglected child._

Christian frowned; while he knew there were some differences between their situations, he couldn't help but compare his own life with Lucia's. Before his biological mother died, nobody except the pimp knew he even existed. Carrick had once told him later in life that investigators and police officers at the scene had found no information about him other than his first name and his date of birth. Lucia didn't even have _that_ , and she had been found all alone by a dumpster in an alleyway…

Had her mother been like the crack whore too? Had she too been negligent and spiteful of Lucia, calling her names while not giving a shit whether or not she lived or died?

 _Had Lucia been broken by her mother too?_

"What you got there?"

Christian blinked and looked up from his paper, seeing Ana standing in the doorway of his office all by herself. She had her arms crossed and was leaning against the doorframe.

"Where's Lucia?" Christian asked, glancing around for her.

"She got tired from playing with her toys, so I put her down for a nap," Ana said, a small smile on her face as she moved further into his study. "She looked so adorable, cuddling with her little elephant."

"She napped in the car earlier - is it okay for her to be sleeping so much?" Christian asked.

"I'm sure it's fine," Ana shrugged, though she had a sad glint in her eye. "Something tells me she hasn't gotten enough sleep in her life before now."

Christian looked up at Ana and grimaced sadly. He reached over and handed her the paper in his hand containing Lucia's background information. "This is what Welch has managed to find about Lucia so far."

Ana took the paper and glanced it over, a furrow in her brow. "Is that it?"

Christian shrugged. "It's not uncommon for children like her to get overlooked by the system. Before I was adopted by the Grey's, I barely had an identity at all."

Ana's eyes moved up to meet Christian's, and he knew what she was thinking. Those blue orbs seemed to pierce right through his body and gaze into his soul.

"Is everything alright, Christian?" she asked, setting the paper down on the desk. "You've been pretty quiet all day."

Christian didn't know what to say - he wasn't really sure what he was feeling - but Ana seemed to naturally understand what was in his heart, as she always did. Without waiting for his answer, she walked around his desk and sat down on his lap. Her arms went around his neck while his hands immediately went to her waist.

"It's just the first day, baby," she said comfortingly, running her hands through the hair at the base of his neck, calming him. "I know it feels a little strange right now, letting this little girl we barely know come live with us, but it'll get easier the more time we spend with her. I promise."

"You're just so comfortable around her," Christian said before he could stop himself. "I've never been good with kids, and now we have one living here with us. How am I able to be a parent to her when I have no idea what I'm doing?"

"Most parents have no idea what they're doing," Ana said wisely. "Like us, they just try to prepare themselves as much as possible for every eventuality. Their ability to be good parents comes from time and experience."

Christian frowned, not feeling particularly reassured, and Ana leaned in to kiss him on the lips.

"Like I said, this is only the first day," she said gently after pulling away, gazing into his eyes. "Don't be to hard on yourself - it'll get easier. I promise."

Christian didn't know what to say, and simply nodded in agreement. Ana pecked him on the lips one last time before standing up from his lap and walking out of his study. Christian simply watched her go, unsure if he felt better about this whole situation.

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you all for reading! I know I left it on kind of a somber note, but I promise next chapter it's going to get a bit better.**

 **Please review! And if you want to follow my Pinterest board for this story, the url is www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	6. Parental Bonding

**A/N: Thank you for all your wonderful reviews and support! Hope you all enjoy this next chapter.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 6: Parental Bonding**

Christian wished he could have said that being Lucia's foster parent got easier over the course of the week, but the fact of the matter was that he just wasn't comfortable in this whole parenting role. He tried, he really did, but it just wasn't clicking for him like it was for Ana. Affection wasn't something he usually gave freely to other people (Ana being the only exception), and Lucia's obvious shyness around him wasn't exactly encouraging. He knew he was still a novice at this whole "parenting" thing, but he had hoped things would have gotten easier by now.

Ana was amazing with Lucia, as Christian already knew - she doted on her, fed her at mealtimes, dressed her in the mornings, played with her, and even helped her use the bathroom. Ana was so good to her since she was so naturally sweet to everyone and everything around her, therefore it made sense she fit so well into this mothering role with Lucia. It was like she was made to be a mom.

Ana kept reassuring Christian that parenting Lucia would get easier with time and practice, but he was having a hard time believing it. He kept trying, though, despite his discomfort - he would help out whenever he could, help feed her at mealtimes, and even sit down and play toys with her and Ana once in awhile. He had never exactly envisioned ever himself doing things like that, but for Ana and Lucia, he was willing to try.

And that was enough for now.

Monday finally rolled around, and Ana and Christian were finally meant to go back to work today. Gail was more than happy to stay home and watch Lucia while they were gone - this was the first time Christian and Ana were leaving Lucia alone under her care, but they both knew it would be alright. Gail was very sweet and loving toward Lucia, and Lucia was quiet as a churchmouse most of the time anyway. Everything would be fine, surely.

Christian arrived at Grey House early that morning, happy to be back in the world of mergers and acquisitions. He had managed to get a little work done last week in his office back home, but it just wasn't the same as being at his corporate office among his employees and business colleagues.

"Welcome back, sir," Andrea greeted him kindly as he walked toward her at the front desk. "How was your week off?"

"Thank you, Andrea. It was fine," Christian said, picking up his messages from the inbox and glancing over them. "Anything I got to handle today?"

"Nothing that I know of. Ros is still heading up that Traeger Industries deal, so that's covered for now. Crandall still wants to talk to you about in-house budget cuts, though."

"I can do that," Christian checked his watch. "Could you grab me a coffee? No milk."

"Yes sir."

Christian turned to walk into his office, feeling a little frustrated. He sometimes ran into this problem at Grey House after taking a leave of absence - nothing major would have happened while he was gone, meaning the rest of his staff had pretty much everything covered. At least there were no fires he had to put out, and his first day back wouldn't be as stressful.

He got settled at his desk, and Andrea came in with his coffee a few minutes later. He fired up his computer and, for the next hour or so, started going through his emails, answering the ones he felt were the most urgent. He then shot a quick email to Ralph Crandall from HR, letting him know he could meet with him about budget cuts at eleven o'clock today.

Just as Christian was going to take a sip of his coffee, his BlackBerry suddenly began to ring with an incoming call. The caller ID said _Anastasia Grey_.

Smiling, Christian answered after the first ring. "Why, hello beautiful."

"Christian," Ana said, sounding flustered. "Has Gail called you?"

"No, why?" Christian's smile immediately turned into a worried frown. "Is everything alright?"

"It's Lucia," Ana explained, clearly sounding distressed. "I got off the phone with Gail earlier, and she said that Lucia started throwing a huge tantrum the moment we left for work. She's tried to calm her down, but Lucia is inconsolable - she won't eat or go down for a nap or anything. I'm seriously worried, Christian - I don't know what's wrong with her," her voice shook slightly.

"It's alright, baby," Christian said soothingly. "Is there anything I can do?"

"Well, I wanted to go back to Escala to check up on her," Ana said anxiously. "But I have a lot of work to do here - I actually have to meet with an author in about ten minutes. I know you probably have a lot of work to do today too, but do you think you could you go home and check up on Lucia for me? If you're too busy, though, I understand. I could just reschedule my meeting…"

"It's fine, baby," Christian interrupted her quickly, eager to help. "I don't have a ton to do today. I can go home and check on Lucia - don't worry about it."

"Really?" Ana sounded immensely relieved. "Oh, thank you Christian! I'm so sorry to be doing this to you, but I just worry about Lucia a lot. She's so hard to read sometimes…"

"I'm sure it'll be okay," Christian said soothingly. "Call Gail and let her know I'll be home in about fifteen minutes. I need to wrap up a couple things here at work before I head over."

"Thank you, baby," Ana said with such sincere gratitude Christian couldn't help but smile. "I'll come by when my meeting's out to check in on you guys, okay?"

"Okay, baby - I'll talk to you later," Christian said. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Christian could hear her smile through the phone before she hung up a moment later. Christian smiled slightly too before hanging up and quickly dialing Taylor.

"Taylor, get the car ready in five minutes - we have to run back to Escala."

"Yes sir."

Christian hung up without saying goodbye and grabbed his BlackBerry and wallet before striding purposefully toward his office doors.

To be honest, Christian had no idea what he was going to do when he got home. He knew he wanted to be there for Lucia when Ana wasn't able, but he couldn't say he was prepared for dealing with a tantrum. Although that's what parents often had to do, right? They needed to deal with their kids when they were being fussy once in awhile.

 _What am I supposed to do though?_

Christian decided to worry about that when he got back to Escala - he would be better able to assess the situation and figure out how to deal with Lucia once he was there.

 _It'll be okay._

He made it down to the parking garage, noticing that Taylor had already pulled the car up and was ready to go. Christian opened the back door and slipped inside before Taylor drove them away.

* * *

The moment the elevator doors opened to the penthouse in Escala, Christian could hear Lucia's screams. Ana wasn't kidding - she really did sound inconsolable. Christian walked into the great room to see Gail standing by the white couch, gazing worriedly down at a distraught Lucia who was lying horizontally on the couch cushions, kicking her feet and crying loudly.

"Mr. Grey," Gail looked up when she saw Christian approach, her expression strained. "I'm so sorry, I don't know what happened. She was completely fine this morning, and then all of a sudden she just started crying and screaming…"

"It's alright Gail - it's not your fault," Christian said, trying to be heard over Lucia's screams. "I'll take care of it."

Gail nodded, and Christian brushed past her and walked over to Lucia on the couch, at a complete loss as to what he was supposed to do. Lucia's tiny red face was screwed up in distress as she continued to wail, tears and snot covering her nose and cheeks. The ponytail Ana had put her hair in earlier today now lay in a tangled knot on the back of her head, and Christian felt a strong sense of pity as he stared at her. He didn't know what had gotten her so worked up, but he was willing to do anything he could to try to calm her down.

"Lucia?" Christian knelt down in front of the couch, gazing at her in concern. "Lucia, what's wrong?"

Lucia didn't respond as she continued to bawl, rolling over and pressing her snotty, tear-stained face into the couch cushion.

"She ate breakfast this morning, so I know she's not hungry," Gail said worriedly from behind Christian. "And I tried giving her her elephant, but that didn't seem to help at all."

Christian reached forward and gently rubbed Lucia's back, hoping that would help calm her down. Her muffled screams and cries didn't seem to lessen, however, and Christian was feeling more helpless by the second. More than likely, she wanted Ana, who was so sweet and loving to her. Someone like Lucia needed that sort of constant affection.

 _Like I did with Grace._

In an instant, Christian was brought back to when he was Lucia's age - back when he was first brought into the Grey's home. Even then he knew he was in a better place than before, but the new people and new environment he was thrust into was still terrifying for him. He remembered giving Grace and Carrick a hard time for awhile after he was first taken in by them, constantly screaming and crying because of how overwhelmed he felt…

 _Lucia probably feels the same._

Christian gazed down at the little girl currently lying on the couch, still wailing in distress, and he felt his heart break for her. He understood exactly the kind of confusion and anxiety a child would experience in her situation. He wanted to show her that there was nothing for her to be afraid of anymore.

That she was no longer alone.

Christian reached down and picked Lucia up from the couch, ignoring her continued screaming and kicking. He brought her up against his chest and wrapped his arms around her, holding her small wriggling frame firmly to his own in a tight embrace. He gently pressed her face into his shoulder as she continued to cry and tried fruitlessly to push away from him. After a few seconds, however, she gave up the struggle, and just let her hands rest limply against his chest as she continued to sob against his shoulder.

"Shh, it's okay," Christian whispered into Lucia's ear, moving up to sit on the couch while keeping her in place against his chest. He still felt uncomfortable having a person other than Ana touch his chest, but he was willing to ignore the pain for Lucia's sake. She needed someone to comfort her right now, and he was going to do it no matter what.

"It's alright… everything's going to be okay…" Christian whispered soothingly into her ear, gently rubbing her back. Lucia continued to cry, though she did it lying passively in Christian's arms rather than kicking up a storm. That was an improvement, at least.

Christian continued to hold Lucia, gently rubbing her back, rocking her gently and kissing her over her hair. Lucia kept crying, though with less and less intensity as the minutes ticked by. Finally, her sobs turned into sniffles, and her sniffles turned into the occasional hiccup.

"...I called Mrs. Grey, sir," Gail said quietly from his left, and Christian looked over to see her walking toward him from the kitchen. "I told her everything's under control."

"Thank you," Christian whispered back before she nodded and walked away. He sincerely hoped she was right about that.

Lucia hadn't made a sound for several minutes now, and Christian looked down to see she had fallen asleep against his shoulder, tears still clinging to her little eyelashes and the tip of her nose. Feeling relieved, Christian rested his cheek against the top of her head and closed his eyes before letting out a small sigh. He was glad Lucia had managed to find at least a little peace, even if it was just in her sleep.

 _She deserves to be happy._

After a few moments, Christian lifted his head up and gazed down at Lucia's sleeping form, a small smile on his lips. This was the first time he had held Lucia in his arms like this, and it felt… nice. Lucia was still a tiny little slip of a girl, but her body clung to his like a little barnacle. Christian tightened his hold on her, feeling a strong desire to protect her from her past, from the fear of her future, and from whatever demons were still chasing her…

Christian was going to protect her no matter what.

Lucia whimpered in her sleep, and Christian kissed the top of her head.

"It's okay, sweetie," he whispered gently, not wanting to wake her. "There's nothing to be afraid of anymore - you're safe now."

 _We both are._

* * *

A couple hours later, the elevator doors to the penthouse opened, and Ana stepped out, gazing around for any sign of Christian or Lucia. The whole place was quiet, however, except for Gail moving around the kitchen as she made lunch.

"Gail," Ana walked over to her. "Is Christian around?"

"Oh, hi Ana," Gail smiled when she noticed her. "Mr. Grey is in his study right now."

"Okay," she nodded, and after a moment, she asked almost warily: "Where's Lucia? Was Christian able to handle the situation with her and everything?"

"Yes, he was," Gail said assuredly. "He handled everything perfectly."

Ana was a little surprised to hear that, though she chose not to say anything. She knew Christian had some doubts about his parenting skills when it came to fostering Lucia, therefore she had been a little worried as to whether or not he could handle her when she was throwing a tantrum. She decided to just go over to the staircase and head to Christian's study so she could talk to him herself.

She knocked on his closed office door, and when she didn't hear an answer, tentatively turned the handle and opened the door to see what he was doing.

The scene before her immediately made Ana's heart melt, and she smiled: Christian was sitting behind his large mahogany desk, working at his computer while also cradling Lucia against his chest and shoulder with one arm. She looked like she had just woken up from a nap, since her hands were tucked up against Christian's chest and her head rested gently upon his broad shoulder. Christian looked surprisingly relaxed, having taken off his suit jacket, loosened his tie a bit and rolled his shirt sleeves up. He was talking to someone on the phone through a hands-free Bluetooth earpiece - when he noticed Ana standing in the door, however, and he smiled before telling the person he was talking to on the phone he had to go. Ana approached them just as he hung up.

"Hi baby," he said quietly to Ana, smiling at her. "How'd your meeting go?"

"It was good," Ana smiled, gazing down at Lucia. "Everything okay here?"

"Yeah, everything's great," Christian smiled at Lucia as well just as she let out a sleepy yawn, blinking blearily. "She's just been having a bit of a rough morning, but she's been feeling better."

Lucia responded by nuzzling her face deeper into Christian's shoulder, letting out an incoherent whine. Ana couldn't help but chuckle at how adorable she was being, and how much more at ease Christian seemed to be around her now. It was almost as if he needed this little push to help him become the loving parent Ana knew he always had the potential to be.

"Gail's making lunch right now," Ana said after a moment, a smile still on her face. "Are you guys hungry at all?"

"Lucia should probably eat something," Christian said, glancing down at her. "Are you hungry at all, sweetie?"

Lucia didn't respond, apparently still too sleepy to say or do anything, and Ana chuckled. Christian stood up from his seat, lifting Lucia up along with him, and Ana moved over to take her from him.

"Come here, honey," Ana now took Lucia in her own arms - she barely moved, and holding her was like holding a limp rag doll. "Time for lunch."

Christian followed Ana and Lucia out into the kitchen area, where Gail had just finished making their food and was plating it up for them. As Christian sat down at the breakfast bar, and as Ana placed Lucia into her booster seat, Ana turned to look at him.

"Thank you for coming over here this morning," she said sincerely. "I know you didn't have to do that for me…"

"Baby, it's fine," Christian said firmly. "You're my wife, so of course I'm going to be there for you when you need me - I want us to be able to rely on and trust each other no matter what. And besides -" he looked over at Lucia and smiled slightly. "It wasn't so bad."

Ana couldn't help but beam back at him, feeling prouder of him than she had probably ever felt before. "I told you parenting would get easier."

Christian gave her a humorous smile, and Ana couldn't help but grin back. She moved around the breakfast bar so she was standing in front of Christian, and leaned in to kiss him deeply on the lips. Christian kissed her back, smiling against her.

After a few moments, Ana pulled away, smiling slightly. "Would you like me to stay at home with Lucia for the rest of the day?"

Christian smiled back before glancing back over at Lucia. "No, I think I can probably stay with her today. You can go back to the office if you want."

Ana had a feeling he was going to say that, but it made her smile nonetheless. "Have I told you lately that you're amazing, Mr. Grey?"

Christian looked at Ana before giving her his signature shy smile. Ana doubted she had ever been more in love with her husband than right at this moment as she leaned in for another kiss, and Christian eagerly kissed her back. After a moment, however, he reluctantly pulled away.

"Mrs. Grey, as much as I would love to ravish you right now, there's a small child in the room, and we are about to eat lunch," he whispered against her lips.

Right on cue, it seemed, Gail came walking around the corner with a couple plates of sandwiches in her hands. Ana slipped out from Christian's grasp and sat down beside him, looking at him with a smile on her face as Gail set their plates down.

"It's always about food with you, Grey," she joked, and Christian laughed as the three of them started digging into their lunch.

* * *

 **A/N: I told you this chapter would be better:) I hope you all liked that bit of cuteness, and if you did, please review!**

 **For all my friends in the United States, Happy Thanksgiving! I'm thankful for all of my lovely readers who have continued to support me and my little writing hobby throughout my stint here on FF :)**

 **Make sure you follow my pinterest board for this story at www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	7. Cat's in the Cradle

**A/N: Thank you for all your wonderful reviews and support! Here's the next chapter for you.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 7: Cat's in the Cradle**

"Hello there, cutey pie."

Lucia looked up from her coloring book on the floor of the great room to see Christian and Ana walk in together from the foyer, smiling down at her. She immediately jumped up and ran over to them, and Christian and Ana both laughed as Lucia practically leapt into Christian's arms.

"Did you miss us today, sweetheart?" Christian asked Lucia lovingly as he picked her up into his arms, and she responded by hugging him around the neck as tightly as she could. Ana and Christian both chuckled at how cute she was being.

It had been about a week since that incident when Christian had come home to comfort Lucia when she was upset, and fortunately nothing like that had happened since. However, Lucia seemed to have become quite affectionate with Ana and Christian - whenever they came home from work now, Lucia would immediately run up and start hugging them, as if she had been afraid they were never going to come back to her at the end of the day. Her obvious attachment to them was touching, but Ana wished Lucia's fear of abandonment didn't have to be such an issue for her.

"'Dere!" she exclaimed excitedly to Christian, pointing at her coloring book on the floor.

"Did you draw something for me?" Christian asked, his eyes lighting up, and Lucia nodded with a big smile on her face. "Well, let's go see it," Christian said, and, still carrying Lucia in his arms, walked over to her coloring book on the ground to examine the art she made.

Ana smiled as she watched Christian and Lucia looking over her masterpiece, which was just purple and green squiggles over a picture of a cartoon horse. Christian still regarded it with enthusiasm, as one does with a small child, and Ana couldn't help but smile as she watched their interaction. She almost couldn't believe this was the same man who had been so awkward and uncomfortable around Lucia for so long - Christian's behavior around her had taken a complete one-eighty, much to everyone's delight.

Deciding to leave them to it, Ana walked over to the kitchen, where Gail was finishing up dinner for the evening. Tonight, it was a delicious-looking penne rigate with creamed spinach and garlic bread.

"Hi Gail," Ana greeted her, setting her purse on the counter. "Smells great."

"Oh, thank you Ana," Gail turned around and smiled when she noticed her. She brushed her hands along her red apron. "Dinner should be ready in about five minutes."

"Great," Ana smiled. "So how was Lucia for you today?"

"She was good," Gail nodded. "A bit quiet all day, but that's become pretty normal."

"She ate all her food for lunch and everything?"

"She did," Gail nodded again, but hesitated a moment, looking a bit anxious. "She still wouldn't go down for a nap afterward, though."

Ana grimaced sadly. With all the improvements Lucia had been making in the last few weeks, sleeping well definitely was not one of them. She almost always put up a huge fuss at night before bed or before she was meant to take a nap - she would cry and kick and scream for hours until she finally wore herself out and (once in awhile) fall asleep from exhaustion. Ana knew kids refusing to go to bed was a common problem for a lot of parents, but she still hated having to deal with it.

"Maybe we should talk to Grace," Ana sighed, sitting down at the breakfast bar. "She might have some insight as to how she handled it when Christian acted out as a kid."

"What about me acting out as a kid?" Christian approached them in the kitchen, still carrying Lucia in his arms. Ana smiled at the sight of them.

"Nothing - we were just trying to figure out how to deal with Lucia's sleeping habits," she said, reaching out to take Lucia from Christian's arms. Christian handed her over, and Ana perched her on her lap.

"She's probably having nightmares," Christian said knowledgeably, taking the seat beside Ana at the breakfast bar. "That's why she's so scared to go to bed - maybe that psychologist from Children's could trying talking to her again."

"That may not be a bad idea," Ana said, glancing down at Lucia on her lap, and she frowned slightly in thought. "I feel like one of us should be around more, though, if we're going to continue having specialists treat her."

"What are you saying?" Christian asked just as Gail walked forward and placed their plates of penne and spinach in front of them. "You think we should take another week off?"

Ana sighed, finally saying what had been on her mind for awhile now. "I've actually been thinking about taking a sabbatical from Grey Publishing sometime soon so I could watch Lucia full time."

Christian was halfway through taking a bite of his penne before freezing in his tracks, staring at Ana. From the kitchen, she heard Gail pause in cleaning the dishes.

"But, baby… publishing is your dream," Christian said to her after a moment, frowning in obvious surprise and confusion. "You honestly want to give all that up just because Lucia isn't sleeping well?"

"It's not just because of that," Ana said, hoisting Lucia up a bit higher on her lap. "The two of us became foster parents so we could help Lucia, who, from what we know, has had a pretty rough start to life. If she's going to get the help she needs, then one of us needs to be here for her full time so we can make sure everything is being done for her to get better."

"Gail has been doing a wonderful job watching her, though," Christian defended just as Gail approached them at the breakfast bar.

"I'm not trying to deny that," Ana said, looking directly at Gail. "Please believe me, Gail, I don't want you to think I feel you're unfit to be watching Lucia. Christian and I wouldn't leave her with you if we didn't 100% believe you were capable of taking care of her…"

"I know what you meant, Mrs. Grey," Gail said understandingly, using Ana's formal name for Christian's benefit. "I would never think that… but for what it's worth, I think you staying home to take care of Lucia would actually be the best option for her."

"Thank you," Ana nodded to Gail appreciatively.

Christian still looked concerned about it, however. "Baby, I would never ask you to quit your job to be a stay-at-home mother, especially since Grey Publishing has been going so well for you…"

"I'm not quitting my job entirely, it would just be a sabbatical," Ana corrected him. "And I told you, I'm only _thinking_ about it right now - I haven't made any concrete decisions as to what I'm going to do yet."

Christian held his hands up defensively. "Okay, fine. We'll talk about it later."

Ana nodded. "Good."

The rest of their dinner commenced as usual - Ana put Lucia down in her booster seat, and they all ate the delicious meal Gail had cooked for them. Lucia was always good about eating her food, and Ana and Christian watched in mild amusement as she gobbled up everything on her plate like it was her last meal. Ana and Christian made normal conversation throughout dinner, talking about the various things that had happened at work today. They decided to avoid the subject of Ana's sabbatical, at least for the time being.

* * *

"You look delectable this evening, Mrs. Grey."

Hours after dinner, Ana and Christian were getting ready for bed. Ana currently stood in front of the mirror in the ensuite, lotioning up her arms and legs before turning in for the night - she was wearing a simple silk cami top and sleep shorts, but Christian was staring at her from the doorway of the bathroom as if he was going to eat her up.

"Is that so, Mr. Grey?" Ana replied flirtatiously. "You don't look to bad yourself."

Christian only had on a pair of blue and white plaid pajama pants and nothing else. His shirtless chest showed off his chiseled six-pack and muscled pecs, making Ana's heart rate pick up.

 _My God, he's hot._

Christian stalked over to Ana and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her body flush against his own. His lips hovered above hers as he smiled. "Did Lucia go to sleep?"

Ana smirked up at him. "Yes, finally," she said, rolling her eyes. Both she and Christian had put Lucia to bed at around 7:30, but as usual, she had downright refused to go down until about a half an hour ago. Christian and Ana had decided to keep a baby monitor beside their bed in case Lucia started putting up a fuss again, which was more than likely to happen.

"Well, hopefully she'll stay that way. I haven't heard a peep from the baby monitor," Christian said. His hands slid from Ana's waist down to her buttocks, and he gave each cheek a small squeeze. "What shall we do with all this peace and quiet, Mrs. Grey?"

Ana smiled lasciviously, snaking her arms up around his neck. "I don't know, Mr. Grey, but I'm sure you'll figure something out."

Christian growled before pressing his lips to hers in a hungry kiss. Ana moaned against him as she kissed him back, and when she felt his hands on her butt tugging her upward, she immediately lifted up her legs and wrapped them around his waist, not breaking their connection.

Christian carried her out of the bathroom and toward the bed, still kissing her as he lay her down upon it. He now hovered over her as they continued their makeout session, her legs still wrapped around his waist while his erection pressed against her core.

Ana whimpered against his lips - God, he felt good. It had been a few days since she had been able to make out with her husband like this, but all the waiting had been worth it. It felt like forever since they had had a quiet night like this…

Wait… quiet?

 _Hold on a second._

"…Christian," Ana pulled her lips away from him, breathless. "Do you hear anything?"

Christian went silent for a moment, straining his ears for any sound. "No, I don't."

"Exactly - why aren't we hearing anything?" Ana asked, trying to worm her way out of Christian's grasp. "Shouldn't we be hearing Lucia breathing on the baby monitor?"

Christian stood up fully so he was no longer on top of Ana, and she scooted over toward the side table where they kept the baby monitor. Sure enough, there was absolutely no sound coming from the other side, almost as if it had been switched off or something.

"Maybe she snuck out of her room," Christian said, grabbing a white t-shirt off a nearby chair and slipping it on over his head. "She might've gone to the kitchen to get a glass of water again."

"I'll go check," Ana said, grabbing her robe and slipping it on. "I'm sorry, but we'll have to take a rain check on our makeout session, Mr. Grey."

Christian chuckled, though Ana could detect a hint of disappointment in his voice: "Well, if you hurry back, Mrs. Grey, we won't have to wait _too_ long."

Ana smiled at him as she walked to the bedroom door and opened it. Just as she was about to step out into the hallway, however, she froze in her tracks.

Lucia was sitting in the hallway in front of their bedroom door. She lay curled up on the ground with a little green blankie that had been at the foot of her bed as well as her plushy elephant. She appeared to be camping out in front of the master bedroom, and the moment Ana opened the door, Lucia quickly sat up, staring up at her warily. Ana stared back at her for a moment in surprise before letting out an amused laugh.

"Christian, come here."

Christian walked over to the door and laughed as well when he saw Lucia sitting curled up on the ground. "So that's where she snuck off to. Good thing you cut our fun time short, Ana."

Ana blushed and gave him a small smack on the arm, unable to hide her smirk. "Oh, stop it."

Christian chuckled, but when he and Ana turned to look back at Lucia, their smiles immediately faded. She was trembling in fear from under the blanket, staring up at them with tears in her brown eyes. She clutched onto her elephant, clearly terrified that she had been caught doing something naughty and they were going to punish her for it.

"Oh, sweetie," Ana immediately knelt down in front of Lucia and tried to pull her into her arms. "It's okay - we're not mad, we promise."

That didn't seem to help, though, as Lucia - due to her fear of being punished and (quite possibly) her lack of sleep - screwed up her face and began to bawl. With a sympathetic sound, Christian quickly knelt down beside Ana as she picked Lucia up off the ground and cuddled her on her lap, shushing her soothingly.

"Shh, it's okay baby," Ana whispered, rocking Lucia gently as she continued to cry. "We're not angry with you, we promise."

"How long has she been out here?" Christian asked worriedly, moving his hand up and brushing a piece of hair away from Lucia's eyes. "She's probably uncomfortable from lying on the hard ground for awhile."

"Come here, sweetheart," Ana said softly, hoisting Lucia up in her arms before getting to her feet. "You can sleep with us tonight."

Christian raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Wait, what?" he asked, getting up and following Ana back into their bedroom. "Is it okay for us to do that?"

"Sure it is. Didn't you ever sleep in Grace and Carrick's bed with them when you were little?" Ana said, perching herself on the edge of the bed and setting Lucia down on top of the comforter. Her cries finally faded away into sniffles. "Lucia's obviously having a hard time sleeping by herself in her own bedroom - maybe we can make an exception just for tonight and let her sleep with us."

Christian hesitated, appearing a bit wary. "I'm not used to other people sleeping in our bed, Ana," he said, looking down at Lucia with extreme reluctance.

Ana realized this was about his touch issues, and she softened slightly. "Lucia's not going to hurt you, Christian," she said gently. "In fact, I think _she's_ the one afraid of getting hurt. When you first let me into your bed all those months ago, you allowed me to comfort and protect you. Lucia sleeping with us in our bed is us doing the same for her."

Christian stared at Ana for a moment before relaxing slightly, a small smile on his face. "Okay. When you put it that way… I think I can do it."

"I know you can," Ana smiled back, pulling the covers back so she and Lucia could crawl under. "If it'll make you feel better, though, Lucia can stay over here on my side of the bed."

"Sounds fair," Christian said, getting under the covers on his own side of the bed. Once situated underneath the blankets, Ana pulled Lucia into her arms, cuddling her tightly against her chest. Lucia nuzzled her tiny face into the crook of Ana's neck, where Ana could feel the residual moisture of her tears press against her skin. Ana kissed the top of Lucia's head before rubbing her hand along her back, hoping she could offer the girl just a little semblance of peace so she could go to sleep.

"Goodnight, baby," Christian said, turning off his bedside lamp before leaning over to kiss Ana's cheek. "And goodnight to you, cutey pie," Christian smiled, pressing his lips to the top of Lucia's head. Lucia made a whimpery noise that may have been a giggle, but she looked far too exhausted to move or make any other sound at the moment.

"Goodnight, Christian," Ana smiled before reaching over and turning off her own bedside lamp, bathing the entire room in darkness. Ana then pulled Lucia tighter against her chest before nestling back down into her pillows, getting comfortable.

"Sleep tight, Lucia."

But Lucia didn't hear her, for she had already fallen fast asleep.

* * *

The next morning, Ana slowly blinked open her eyes, seeing early morning light streaming in through the bedroom windows. It was Saturday, so she didn't feel the urgency to get up and get ready like she normally would have on a weekday. She felt a warm weight on top of her, and for a split second, she thought it was just Christian spooning her in his sleep. After a moment, however, she remembered they had gone to bed with Lucia, and Ana blinked open her eyes to Lucia still perched on her chest, neither of them having moved an inch the entire night.

Ana's heart melted when she saw how cute Lucia looked, fast asleep and nestled against her like that. Ana looked toward Christian, and her heart melted all over again when she saw he had turned over in his sleep and wrapped an arm around her and Lucia, spooning them. Ana felt like she was the center of a cuddle sandwich, and she couldn't help but smile happily to herself.

Lucia slowly began to stir awake before blinking open her big brown eyes, pulling herself out of the vestiges of sleep. She didn't make a move to get up, however - she instead yawned widely and nestled deeper into the crook of Ana's neck before fiddling with the lapel of her silk robe, which Ana had forgotten to take off before going to bed. Ana simply watched Lucia playing with her robe, affection for the small girl filling her heart.

 _She's so adorable._

"…Mommy," Lucia mumbled after a moment, as if she were testing out the word. Her fingers still played idly with Ana's clothing.

Ana froze, staring down at Lucia in momentary shock.

 _Did she just call me...?_

After a moment, Lucia brought her hand down from Ana's clothes and placed it on Christian's arm, which was still wrapped around her and Ana. Her tiny fingers began fiddling with some of the hairs on his forearm. "...Daddy."

Ana bit her lip, trying to hold back her smile. She could feel herself tearing up at just how sweet this moment she had just witnessed was, and when she turned to look at Christian, she noticed he had finally woken up too. His tired eyes gazed at Lucia with profound tenderness, and when he turned to look at Ana, both their smiles were practically face-splitting. They didn't have to speak in order to share this beautiful moment with each other.

For the first time ever, Ana truly felt that the three of them were a real family.

* * *

 **A/N: Hope you all liked that chapter! If you did, please leave a review :)**

 **I know there's been lots of cuteness in these last few chapters, but the next one will hint at a little upcoming drama. Stay tuned!**

 **If you'd like to follow my Pinterest board for this story, the url is www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	8. Birthday Party

**A/N: Thank you for all your wonderful reviews and support! Here's the next chapter for you.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing**

* * *

 **Chapter 8: Birthday Party**

 **~one week later~**

"Happy birthday Ana!"

Ana beamed widely as she stood in the great room at Escala with Christian by her side and Lucia in her arms. Grace, Carrick, Mia, Elliot, Ethan and Kate all entered through the foyer, holding wrapped gifts, balloons and baked treats for a little birthday get-together. The whole Grey clan along with Kate and Ethan had insisted upon throwing a party at Escala for Ana's 22nd birthday, and Ana had agreed as long as they kept the attendance within family and close friends. Ray was going to be driving down from Montesano a little bit later, which Ana couldn't have been happier about - today was going to be an amazing day, she just knew it.

And the whole family could finally come and meet Lucia too. It was a win-win.

"Happy birthday, darling," Grace smiled warmly as she gave Ana a hug. She then turned and smiled at Lucia. "And how are you today, Lucia?"

Lucia was still a bit shy around new people, but she obviously recognized Grace from the hospital. She offered her a meek smile before burying her face in Ana's shoulder, causing the two women to chuckle.

"Oh, she's just as cute as I remember her," Grace said, pressing a hand to her heart. "She looks beautiful today."

Ana had dressed Lucia up in an adorable little white and blue dress with tights and Mary Jane shoes. Christian had also pulled her hair back in a ponytail along with a cute yellow headband with flower decals. Ana was initially surprised that Christian had offered to do Lucia's hair, but considering how talented he had always been when braiding her own hair, she shouldn't have been too surprised he was good at that sort of thing.

"Oh my God, she is _so_ cute guys," Mia squealed, smiling widely and clasping her hands together as she gazed excitedly at Lucia. "I can't believe you two are foster parents now!"

"Calm down, Mia - it's not that exciting," Christian said to his sister, though he smiled as he said it.

"Ana Banana!" Elliot hugged Ana right after Grace. "Happy birthday!"

"Thanks Elliot," Ana smiled brightly at her brother-in-law. "How's your arm doing?"

"Much better, thank you," Elliot pushed his sleeve up and showed her the jagged scar on his bicep. "The doctors say I'm completely healed now, even though I'm still terrified whenever I take two steps outside my apartment."

"Baby, you're not that bad," Kate hooked her arm through Elliot's right one, smiling admonishingly at him. "He was a bit nervous going outside at first, but he's been getting a lot better over the last few weeks."

"Being a little nervous is understandable, Elliot - that's nothing to be ashamed of," Grace said to her son soothingly. "You've gone through a lot, and you still need some time to process everything."

"Yeah, and you can try to look on the bright side of it all," Christian said, taking Lucia out of Ana's arms and into his own. Lucia immediately wrapped her little arms around Christian's neck. "If you weren't attacked in front of that bar in the Jungle, Ana and I would have never gotten a foster child."

The entire Grey family beamed widely at Christian and Lucia. They had never seen Christian speak affectionately about any child, let alone carry one in his arms, so it was an endearing moment to say the least.

"There could be another bright side too, you know," Carrick said, looking at Elliot pointedly. "You can't sidestep this whole issue forever, Elliot."

"I know Dad," Elliot said, rolling his eyes and shaking his head at his father. Ana looked between them, frowning slightly.

"What are you talking about?" she asked.

"The guy who attacked Elliot," Kate explained, and Ana looked at her. "Carrick wants Elliot to press charges of assault and battery against him. Elliot has a solid case, since there were several witnesses to his attack and everything, so he could probably get the guy about five years in prison." She grimaced slightly, looking a bit awkward. "Elliot doesn't want to, though."

"Can we please not talk about this now?" Elliot said quietly, giving Kate a pointed look.

"Why wouldn't you want to try to put the guy in prison?" Christian frowned at his brother, perplexed. "I'd think you of all people would want justice to be served."

"I just want to forget it ever even happened," Elliot said firmly. "That night was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life and I don't want to relive it. _Ever_."

"So you don't care if this guy goes free?" Christian asked him incredulously, bordering on angry. "If he goes out into the world and does the same thing he did to you to someone else? You could honestly live with yourself if you allowed that to happen?"

"Oh, so suddenly it's my responsibility when a mentally-unstable drug addict attacks a person?" Elliot asked heatedly. Before Christian could respond, however, they heard the elevators ding from the foyer. Everyone turned around to see Ray Steele step into the great room, smiling brightly with a small wrapped present in his hand.

"Hi everyone. I hope I'm not too late," he said, gazing around the room with a genial smile on his face.

"Daddy!" Ana beamed, rushing toward Ray and throwing her arms around him. "I missed you!"

"I missed you too, baby girl," Ray pulled away first and smiled lovingly at her. "Happy birthday."

"Thanks Dad."

"Let's talk about this later, alright boys?" Carrick said quietly to Elliot and Christian. "It's Ana's birthday today - we don't want to spoil it with petty arguments."

"Fine," Elliot sighed, relenting.

"Want to go meet Ray, Lucia?" Christian asked the little girl in his arms. She responded by clutching her tiny arms tighter around his neck as he hoisted her up, grinning. "Well then, come on, sweetheart."

The next couple hours or so passed by with cake, presents, friendly conversation, and Lucia being doted upon by the entire Grey family and Ray. Christian was initially worried about how Lucia was going to manage being around so many unfamiliar faces, but she seemed to be doing okay so far. After being introduced to Ray in particular, Lucia seemed to come out of her shell a bit more, much to Ana and Christian's delight. It seemed like this birthday was going to be a happy celebration after all.

"She's beautiful, Christian," Carrick said to his son as they stood in the kitchen. They both watched as Lucia brought out all her toys into the great room to show to Ray, who was sitting on the couch and watching her in amusement. Everybody else stood around the great room, talking and laughing with each other. "Do you and Ana know her story yet?"

"Not really. Welch managed to dig up a little information about her mother, but apart from that there really isn't anything concrete to go on," Christian said, taking a sip of his coffee.

"The doctor at Children's said that she was likely abused?" Carrick asked, his expression serious.

"Yeah," Christian nodded, his mouth a hard line as he glanced down at his feet. "She's been doing a lot better since she came to live in Escala with me and Ana, but it's hard to say whether or not we're helping her in the long run." He looked up again, and watched as Lucia held up her stuffed elephant excitedly for Ray to examine.

"You can't know that, Christian - not yet," Carrick explained patiently. "The effects of abuse can manifest in many different ways, but it may turn out that Lucia doesn't even remember what was done to her. She is young enough to not be affected by what may have happened to her."

"She was my age when -" Christian began, but then stopped himself, not wanting to continue that thought. Carrick seemed to understand, however.

"I know," he said quietly. "But you turned out okay, didn't you?"

Christian didn't say anything, but just grimaced to himself. At that moment, Elliot appeared.

"Hey," he said to them, going to the fridge and opening it, looking for something to eat. "What are you guys talking about?"

"Lucia," Christian said simply.

"Oh," Elliot nodded, reappearing out of the fridge with a can of Pepsi in his hand. "I don't know if I've told you this yet, Christian, but seriously - what you and Ana are doing for that little girl is really great. I don't think I could even do something like that."

"Thanks, man."

"Elliot, we still need to talk about your case against that Credd guy," Carrick said firmly to Elliot, who groaned.

"Seriously - you want to do this now?" he asked exasperatedly. "You said it yourself, we don't want to spoil Ana's birthday party."

"This whole thing isn't going to go away just because you want it to, Elliot," Carrick admonished. "Just let me represent you - I'm sure we can have this problem over and done within a matter of weeks."

"It's not that," Elliot shook his head. "Just forget it, Dad."

"You don't want to revisit what happened," Christian stated, and Elliot looked up at him, clearly surprised. "It's understandable, Elliot - that whole experience of being stabbed was terrifying for you, and I get how rehashing it all in court is something you want to avoid however long you can."

Elliot continued to stare at Christian for a few seconds before making a derisive sound. "What the hell, man? First you're yelling at me to take the guy to court, and now you're being super nice and understanding?" He gave his brother a perplexed look. "I don't get your brain."

Christian smiled as Carrick chuckled slightly. "Sorry El. But for the record I do think you should press charges against this guy, even if doing it does scare you. You'll be happier for it in the long run."

"Christian's right, son," Carrick said, nodding. "Facing all this is frightening, but it'll help you gain closure. I've seen it happen many times with clients who have undergone abuse or severe trauma going to court."

Elliot still looked a bit uncomfortable. "…We'd have to go down there, though, wouldn't we? To the police station in The Jungle where I was attacked?"

"Probably, yes," Carrick affirmed solemnly. Elliot still looked a bit nervous, so Christian decided to speak up:

"If it'll make you feel more comfortable, Elliot, I can come with you and Dad to the police station. I'll bring some of my security team too, just in case."

Elliot seemed a bit relieved by that suggestion, though he stared at Christian in surprise. "You'd do that for me?"

"Of course I would," Christian said immediately. "You're my brother, and I'll be there to support you no matter what."

Elliot still looked a bit surprised, but after a moment managed a small smile. "…Alright, thanks man. I should have some time next week to go down to the police station. I'll give you and Dad a call."

"Thank you, Elliot," Carrick said, smiling in relief. "We'll get through all this together - as a family."

"Right," Elliot nodded, turning toward the great room, where everyone else was congregated. "You know, maybe we can file a missing person's report on Christian Grey when we're at the police station… since clearly my brother was kidnapped and an imposter is in his place."

Carrick laughed, and Christian couldn't help but smile too as Elliot walked back over to where Mia and Grace were chatting. Ana was nearby talking to Gail, and when she glanced over and caught Christian's eye, she smiled brightly. Christian felt his heart catch in his chest as he smiled back.

"That was very kind of you, son," Carrick said sincerely, clasping his hand on Christian's shoulder. Christian looked over at him. "I know Elliot was just joking around, but we've all noticed the change you've undergone within the last few months. It's good to see you so happy."

Christian couldn't help but smile. "Thanks Dad - I _am_ happy." He glanced over at Lucia, who was still playing with Ray over by the couch. "For a lot of reasons."

Carrick chuckled, understanding what he meant. "Yep, kids'll do that to you."

Christian smiled again; it was true, bringing Lucia into his home had changed his perspective on lot of things - namely, his ability to love. Only a few short months ago, he had married the love of his life, his beautiful Anastasia, and he had truly believed that he could never feel a stronger sense of love than when he had made her his wife. However, being a foster parent to Lucia this past month or so had managed to bring out another form of love in him, one he had never thought he would feel even after falling for Ana. It was almost like a paternal love - a strong and fervent desire to protect and care for Lucia like she was his own.

It was a new feeling to experience, but one he could definitely get used to.

Several hours later, the party finally began to wind down. The birthday cake had already been eaten, and Ana had opened up all her birthday presents. Grace and Carrick had gifted her a free day at the spa (not Esclava thankfully), Mia a beautiful pair of suede Louboutins, Kate and Elliot some nice cashmere sweaters, and Ray a gorgeous hand-carved jewelry box made from cherry wood. Nothing could top Christian's gift, however - he had completely surprised her by giving her the keys to her very own white 2012 Audi R8. Ana was so surprised and excited by this gift she had practically burst into tears, and she only managed to calm down once Lucia had crawled onto her lap and gave her a hug.

Evening had fallen, and everyone had finally left to go home (except Ray, who was staying in one of the guest rooms for the night before heading back to Montesano). Ana was currently helping Gail clean up the mess that was made after the party, which thankfully wasn't too bad. It only took a few minutes of effort to gather up all the empty plates and cups and throw them away.

"Ana?" Gail approached Ana in the great room with several envelopes in her hand. "Some mail came in this afternoon for Mr. Grey - do you know where he is?"

"I think he's in his study right now," Ana said. "I can go bring it to him if you want."

"Oh, thank you dear. I can finish cleaning up out here too, if you'd like," Gail offered kindly, giving Ana the envelopes, and she smiled.

"Deal."

Ana walked up the staircase toward where Christian's study was, but when she knocked on his closed door, there was no answer.

"Christian?" Ana opened the door slightly and peeked inside, only to find it empty. She frowned in confusion.

"I'm in here!" Christian's voice sounded from a few doors down, where Lucia's bedroom was. Ana walked over to her doorway, only to find Christian sitting on Lucia's bed with Lucia on his lap, one arm wrapped around her waist and an open picture book in his other hand. Ana smiled warmly at the two of them.

"Hi baby," Christian grinned at his wife. He set the picture book down before standing up, hoisting Lucia up in his arms. "We were just reading a book."

"I noticed," Ana smiled, stepping toward them and tickling Lucia's tummy, causing her to squirm and giggle. "Looked like fun."

"I was thinking of giving her a bath before putting her to bed," Christian suggested. "She hasn't had one all week, and she's had a pretty busy day today with the party and everything."

"That's a good idea," Ana nodded. "Let me go change first, and I can come in and help you."

"Thanks, baby."

Lucia started babbling something that sounded like "Danks, bay-bee!"

Christian and Ana both chuckled at that, loving how adorable Lucia was.

Just as Ana was about to head over to the master bedroom so she could change into more comfortable clothes, she remembered the mail she was supposed to have given to Christian. Instead of going back and giving it to Christian himself, she decided to just go to his study again and put it on his desk. She figured he'd find it there later.

Once in his study, Ana walked around to the front of his desk and set the mail down by his keyboard. She realized he must have been working in here earlier since his computer was on and the browser was still open.

Ana inadvertently glanced at his monitor, not expecting to find anything particularly important, but the moment her eyes landed on the headline at the top of the web page, her heart began to pound loudly in her chest:

 _Adoption Laws in the State of Washington_

Ana could only stare at the computer screen, surprised - Christian wanted to learn about adoption laws? There was only one explanation as to why he was doing that… Ana always knew this was going to be something the two of them needed to talk about at some point, but she still felt a bit blindsided by it. Were they ready to start talking about this?

Could she and Christian really adopt Lucia?

Ana looked at the computer screen for a few more seconds before shaking her head slightly and making a move to leave Christian's study. She walked to their bedroom, her mind still swimming with what she had seen.

* * *

 **A/N: I hope you all enjoyed that chapter! If so, please review :)**

 **December is finally here! I'm going to be pretty busy around the holiday season, and I probably won't have as much time to write as I've had in the past. I'll do my best to update at least once a week, but please don't be upset if there are larger gaps between updates.**

 **Also, a special shout out to all the amazing ladies in the Top Five Favorite Completed Fifty Shades of Grey Fan Fiction Stories Facebook Group for voting my story Inalienable Circumstances as #3 of the top five best FSOG stories in November! Thank you all so much for your love and support - it means more to me than I can say!**

 **If you'd like to follow my Pinterest board for this story, the link is www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	9. Future Plans

**A/N: Thank you all for your reviews and support! Here's the next chapter for you.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 9: Future Plans**

"You've got to eat up, Lucia."

Christian helped Lucia scoop up the spoonful of oatmeal into her mouth, but most of it seemed to just glob onto her chin and smear over most of her face. Christian smiled slightly to himself as he grabbed a napkin and wiped her face clean. "What am I going to do with you, silly girl?"

Lucia grinned and giggled in response. She then babbled something that sounded like "Da-da."

Christian smiled widely at her. He never thought he could feel so happy from a little child calling him that. "Lucia, can you say Daddy?"

Lucia giggled and looked down at her hands, smiling bashfully. "Daddy."

Christian beamed, feeling a strong affection for her deep in his chest. "Good job. Now can you say Mommy?"

Lucia looked up and smiled widely, lifting her hand and reaching toward something behind Christian. " _Mommy_!" she said excitedly, her eyes lighting up joyfully.

Christian looked over his shoulder and smiled when he saw Ana approaching them from the stairs leading up to the bedroom. She gazed at Lucia lovingly.

"Good morning, sweetheart," she said fondly, moving forward and pressing a kiss to Lucia's forehead. "And how are you today?"

Lucia didn't answer - she had become distracted by the bowl of oatmeal in front of her as she tried to flip it over and dump the contents of it onto the table. Christian managed to catch it before she made a mess, however.

"Nice catch," Ana giggled, moving over to the fridge. "Maybe we should try to feed her something a little less messy? I could cut up a banana or something."

"No, that's okay," Christian said, picking up the spoon again. "We can manage. Also, Gail's stopping by in a minute to get Lucia ready for the day."

Ana nodded, and after a moment walked back over to the breakfast bar with a mug of tea in her hands. "That reminds me… I wanted to have a word with you about me taking a sabbatical from Grey Publishing at some point in the near future?"

Christian nodded, remembering her mentioning that. "Have you made a decision yet?"

Ana bit her lip before nodding as well. "Yeah, actually, I think I am going to take a leave of absence from work. At least for a little awhile."

Christian pressed his lips together in a grimace. "I thought you might."

Ana raised her eyebrows. "You're disappointed in me?"

"Of course not," Christian said quickly. "I just want you to be happy, baby, and I want to be sure that taking a sabbatical from your dream job is something that will make you happy."

Ana softened slightly before smiling. "I am happy, Christian. I love my job, but I would also love to stay home and take care of Lucia. Both are equally important to me, but right now I feel Lucia needs me more than my job does. And I know I want to be there for her despite everything."

Christian smiled at her, reassured. "Then you have my support, baby."

Ana smiled before leaning over and pressing her lips against Christian's in a sweet kiss. "Thank you, sweetie."

Christian smiled as she pulled away. Before he could say anything else, however, Gail walked into the kitchen to get Lucia dressed and ready for the day. Lucia, thankfully having become much more accustomed to Gail's presence within the past week or so, went happily.

Once alone, Ana turned to Christian, looking a bit apprehensive about something once again. "I know I just brought up taking a sabbatical from work, but there's actually something else I wanted to talk to you about too…"

Christian turned to face her expectantly. "Okay. What is it?"

Ana glanced down at her mug of tea before looking back up at Christian, as if steeling herself to say something. "I went into your study last night to drop off some mail onto your desk, and your browser was open… and it was on a site talking about adoption laws in the state of Washington."

Christian blinked, feeling his heart catch in his throat. Shit, he had completely forgotten about the little impromptu research he had done last night regarding Lucia - he hadn't meant Ana to see that, at least not yet. Was she angry? He honestly couldn't tell at the moment.

"…Oh," he said, unsure of what else to say to that.

"I'm not angry at you," Ana said quickly, as if she understood what he was thinking. "And I'm not saying that I would never consider adopting Lucia in the future at some point… I just feel like it's something you and I need to talk about if you're already considering it as an option."

"I'm not," Christian said quickly. "I mean, not really… I was just working on my computer and I just randomly decided to look up adoption laws in Washington. It wasn't premeditated or anything, I was just…" Christian hesitated for a moment before shrugging, shaking his head. "I don't know what I was thinking."

Ana hesitated for a moment too. "So… do you - and it's completely fine if you don't - but do you honestly ever see yourself being Lucia's father someday?"

Christian thought about his answer for a moment - _did_ he see himself as being Lucia's father someday? He cared a lot about her, that was for sure, but the idea of suddenly having the permanent responsibility of a young child was a daunting one. Could he actually do it?

After a few seconds, Christian shook his head. "I don't know," he said sincerely. "I mean, before I met you, I had never even considered being a father. It wasn't even within the realm of possibility for me. After we got married, though, I kind of started thinking about kids, but only in the abstract. I figured you and I would have children at some point in our lives, but they would always be… you know… _ours_."

Ana nodded, understanding. "That's sort of how I felt at first too. But ever since Lucia came into our lives…" she shook her head, smiling slightly to herself. "She calls us 'Mommy' and 'Daddy' and I feel like she's already ours. Y'know?"

Christian chuckled, smiling softly. "Yeah, I do."

A comfortable silence fell between them for several moments, until finally Ana spoke up again: "It's probably too early to do anything major in regards to Lucia's adoption right now, but I just wanted to discuss it with you so I know where your head's at regarding it."

Christian couldn't help but smile amusedly. "Baby, _I_ don't even know where my head's at regarding it."

Ana laughed understandingly. "You're considering it as a possibility sometime in the future, as am I. I know that the longer we take care of Lucia and more comfortable we get in these parenting roles, the better we'll understand how we'll want to proceed with the whole situation."

Christian nodded slowly, thinking about what she said. "Yeah, I think that accurately sums it up." He suddenly smiled. "It's sort of like in the business world… we're doing an evaluation on a potential merger."

Ana giggled. "Whatever your business brain wants to call it, that's fine. But are you okay with that?"

"Absolutely," Christian leaned over and kissed Ana on the lips. "There's no rush - let's just enjoy being Lucia's foster parents for the time being."

Ana nodded and smiled, satisfied. "Sounds good."

The two of them continued to chat for a few minutes after that - Christian talked about some projects he was working on while Ana speculated what she would have to get done before taking her leave of absence. After a moment, Christian remembered something:

"Oh, I almost forgot - Gia Matteo finally sent over her plans for our new house on the Sound," he said. Ana's face immediately lit up.

"Oh, that's great! Did she make any new additions to the original model?"

"Not really. She took your suggestion and added some French doors to the balcony in the master bedroom, and she also added a few more windows in the north wing, but aside from that it's all pretty much the same."

"That's good," Ana nodded, satisfied. "I'd hoped she didn't change too much. So when do you think Elliot's construction team can get started on the renovations?"

"Well, first we have to meet with Gia and approve her changes, then we can start with the actual renovations."

Ana's face fell slightly. "Couldn't we just approve them over email or something?"

Christian raised an eyebrow, amused. "You don't like talking to Gia?"

"No," Ana pouted. "She flirts with you in front of me. It's annoying."

Christian couldn't help but chuckle. "Are you jealous, Mrs. Grey?"

Ana still pretended to pout, though she fought to keep the smile from tugging at the corners of her lips. "Maybe."

Christian beamed widely, inordinately pleased his wife felt so possessive of him. He stood up from his chair at the breakfast bar and cupped Ana's face in his hands. "Why, I had no idea I had married such a green-eyed monster, Mrs. Grey," he said teasingly, brushing his thumbs along her cheeks before leaning in and pecking her on the lips. "I'll remember that in the future."

"You better," Ana quipped, and Christian laughed.

"Oh I will. And I think it goes without saying you have absolutely nothing to worry about, baby." He leaned down and pressed his forehead to hers, smiling lovingly. "I will only ever have eyes for you."

Ana smiled happily back. "Ditto, Mr. Grey."

* * *

The next few days were rather busy for the Greys, most especially for Ana. She had begun the process of taking a leave of absence from Grey Publishing, meaning she had a lot of loose ends to tie up before she went. First things first, she needed to determine who was going to run the day-to-day operations in her place - it was a difficult decision, but she eventually decided on one of her top senior editors, Mel Sherwood. Mel was an older woman who had only had a couple years' experience in the publishing industry, but Ana felt she was definitely more than qualified to take over as acquisitions editor and creative head of Grey Publishing in her place.

Ana needed to stay late nights at the office in order to train Mel on how to run everything, meaning that most nights Christian would get back home to Escala before Ana would, which was a first for them. Christian didn't mind, though - while he did miss his wife, he would usually get to spend his time after work with Lucia, who was always thrilled to see him at the end of the day no matter what.

Being with her never failed to warm his heart.

It was the third night this week that Ana stayed late at the office, and Christian was currently sitting on the couch in the great room with his laptop perched on his knees, diligently checking his emails and replying to the necessary ones. Lucia was playing with her toys behind him near his grand piano, and Christian could hear her playing with some of them (the hard plastic ones, at least) by tossing them against the hardwood floors. As long as Lucia didn't hurt herself doing it, Christian found that he didn't have a problem with her being a little noisy.

Christian continued to work on his computer; just as he was about to email back his head of financials about in-house budget cuts, his computer suddenly dinged with a new email from his brother:

* * *

 **From: Elliot Grey  
** **To: Christian Grey  
** **RE: Police station**

Hey Christian,

Dad finally set up a meeting with that Credd guy at the police station near 12th Street. If you and your security guys still wanted to come, it'll be this coming Tuesday at 10:30 am.

Let me know. Thanks again, man.

* * *

Christian was glad to finally hear from Elliot, since he had been wondering when he and Carrick would set up a day to head over to the police station. Christian quickly emailed Elliot back telling him he would be at the police station bright and early with Taylor and Sawyer on Tuesday morning.

While Christian didn't exactly relish the idea of going into the bad part of town, he was willing to stick it out for Elliot. Hell, if Lucia could survive in the Jungle for four years, he could managed half a day, right?

Just as he was thinking this, he heard a loud clunk from behind him, and a moment later, the unmistakable plunking of his piano keys being hit in a discordant sound. Christian turned around to see that Lucia had managed to climb up on his piano bench and had pushed open the lid, pressing her little fingers on the lower keys as if curious as to what they sounded like.

"Hey," Christian quickly set aside his laptop and jumped to his feet, hurrying toward Lucia. "Lucia - get down from there!"

His main concern was for Lucia's safety - he didn't want her to accidentally hurt herself after having climbed up onto the piano bench. However, his scolding tone must have frightened Lucia, for she immediately snatched her hand away from the piano keys as if they had burned her. She then began scooting away from Christian, a fearful look in her eyes as if afraid he was about to punish her for breaking some rule.

The look in her eyes made Christian's heart break.

"Sweetheart," he said gently, reaching down and picking her up in his arms. Her tiny arms immediately went around his neck. "It's okay… I'm not angry, I promise."

Lucia didn't seem reassured, for her large brown eyes still gazed at him with trepidation and fear. Christian could actually feel her shivering in his arms - he immediately understood it wasn't him she was afraid of, but it was residual fear that had been ingrained in her from when she was abused. Christian's heart broke for her all over again.

 _Only a couple months ago I didn't even think I_ had _a heart…_

Christian gazed down at Lucia before glancing down at the piano, which still had it's lid up. He suddenly had an idea.

"Come here, Lucia," he said, hoisting her up higher onto his hip before sitting down on the piano bench. "Wanna see the piano?"

Lucia didn't respond - she simply gazed down at the instrument as if enraptured by it, and when Christian brought his hand up to play a couple notes, her eyes followed his fingers as if hypnotized by them. Christian smiled as he played a scale of five notes.

"Do you want to try, Lucia?" Christian picked up Lucia's little hand and placed her fingers on the keys. She didn't move, so Christian gently pressed her finger onto each note, producing a sound.

"There, you see?" Christian let go of her hand and pressed middle C with his index finger. "You wanna try? Just use your finger and hit the note, like this."

Lucia blinked for a moment before tentatively bringing her finger down and lightly pressing middle C, barely making a sound. Christian beamed with pride.

"Great job, Lucia!" he said happily, wrapping his arms around her torso and hugging her tightly. She giggled in response. "Let's try it again now…"

He pressed middle C with his index finger again, and Lucia did the same right after, clearly more confident since she hit the note a bit harder this time. She turned and smiled happily up at Christian when she did, and Christian couldn't help but laugh.

"You're doing great, sweetheart."

Christian hit middle C again, but then hit D right after, wondering if Lucia would follow his lead. Sure enough, when he brought his hand down, she immediately brought up her tiny index finger and confidently hit middle C followed by D. Christian was astounded.

 _Wow, she really learns fast._

"Alright, Lucia - let's try something a little tougher." Christian said, bringing his hand up to the piano again. He hit middle C, then D, then E before going back down the three-note scale with D and middle C again.

Clearly wanting to face this challenge head-on, Lucia brought her finger up to the keys again and hit middle C, D, and E in quick succession. She hesitated a moment, however, unsure of where her finger was supposed to go, but after a second or two, hit D again before going back to middle C.

Christian could only stare at her in complete shock - he hadn't expected Lucia to do that at all! A four-year-old child doing a three-note scale like that on her first try? He himself hadn't been able to do that until the age of six! This girl had a gift, Christian could already tell.

 _With the right training, she could grow up to be a goddamn prodigy!_

"That was amazing, sweetheart!" Christian praised excitedly, hugging Lucia around the waist again, and she giggled happily. Christian didn't think she fully appreciated her musical gift as of yet, but hopefully at some point, she would be able to use her talent to the best of her ability.

And right now, Christian wanted to be the one to teach her.

* * *

Ana had come home from work a couple minutes ago, but she hadn't announced her presence just yet. She just stood in the doorway of the great room, leaning against the door frame and smiling as she watched her husband teach Lucia how to play the various notes on his piano. It was honestly one of the most adorable things she had ever seen, and she was glad she got to be a witness to it.

Ana thought back to the conversation she and Christian had a few days ago, about possibly adopting Lucia in the near future. While she could barely admit it to herself right now, she honestly hoped she would one day become a part of their little family if it meant more sweet moments like this.

* * *

 **A/N: I hope you all enjoyed that! If you did, please review!**

 **Also, I have a little Christmas surprise in the works for you guys, which I plan to finish within the next couple weeks or so. Stay tuned for that!**

 **If you'd like to follow my Pinterest board for this story, the link is www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	10. Trouble with the Law

**A/N: Thank you all for your reviews and support! Here's the next chapter for you :)**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 10: Trouble with the Law**

Tuesday morning, the day Christian was meant to go down to the police station with Carrick and Elliot, dawned bright and early. Christian woke up at about five-thirty that morning, and, unable to go back to sleep, decided to go for a quick jog with Taylor. Afterwards, he took a quick shower to wash the sweat off before throwing on a t-shirt and jeans and going into his study to get some work done. There wasn't much he actually needed to do today for GEH, but it was still early, and Ana and Lucia hadn't woken yet. He needed something to distract him a bit before heading out to the police station later that morning with his brother and dad.

Christian couldn't help but feel a bit anxious thinking about their trip to the station later today - he'd have to bring a lot of extra security, even when they were in the police station surrounded by cops. It still felt like they were taking a huge risk by going into that bad part of Seattle, but Christian had promised Elliot he would do it, so he was going to.

 _He is my brother, after all._

Christian thought about his relationship with his family before he had met Ana - his relationship with Elliot in particular was rather different since he had gotten married. He would've never gone out of his way to give moral support to his brother like this; while he honestly loved all his family members, he had never really felt comfortable doing stuff like this for them. Being a husband and a lover in addition to his usual CEO persona had truly changed him as a person. He had always been sort of resistant to that sort of change, considering his troubled past, but ever since he fell in love, Christian couldn't really bring himself to hate the new him. Life had gotten exponentially better since Ana came into it.

And he couldn't help but feel there were other, newer aspects to his life now that was beginning to change him for the better too…

"Knock, knock," Ana peeked into Christian's study, slowly edging open the door. Christian glanced up, and smiled when he noticed it was both Ana and Lucia, the latter holding tightly onto Ana's hand as they both stepped inside the room. They were both still wearing their pajamas, and Christian thought they looked absolutely adorable together.

 _Man I am going soft for those two…_

"Can you say 'good morning', sweetheart?" Ana asked Lucia sweetly, walking her toward Christian's desk. Lucia grinned happily.

"Goo' moh-ning!" she said to Christian, and he and Ana beamed at her.

"Good morning, sweetheart," Christian smiled, and Lucia ran around his desk to climb up eagerly onto his lap. Christian allowed her to, feeling a strong sense of affection deep in his chest as he took her into his arms.

"…And good morning to you, Mrs. Grey," Christian smiled up at his wife, who was watching Lucia cuddling on his lap. She smiled widely up at her husband.

"Good morning yourself, Mr. Grey," Ana grinned, walking around his desk and settling herself on the side of Christian's lap that wasn't being occupied by Lucia. She leaned forward and kissed Christian sweetly on the lips, and Christian kissed her happily back. They were so wrapped up in each other that it wasn't until Lucia let out a squeal and a giggle that finally brought them back to reality. They couldn't help but look down and chuckle at how cute she was being.

"Are you going to be heading out to meet with your dad and Elliot soon?" Ana asked Christian, placing her hand on the nape of his neck and playing with the hair there. He let out a small sigh, wrapping an arm around Ana's waist as if wanting to hold her there.

"I can gather up all the security we'll need and meet up with them in about an hour. I'd like to get dressed and have some breakfast first, though," Christian said. He knew he had all those things to do, but he still pulled Lucia closer to him and kissed the top of her head, not wanting her to leave. Lucia seemed to understand, and she hunkered down and snuggled up against his t-shirt clad chest.

"We'll let you get to it then," Ana said gently, getting up from Christian's lap. He felt disappointed when she reached down and picked Lucia up off of Christian's lap, causing her to whine in protest. Christian shared her sentiment.

"Gail's making omelettes for breakfast right now," Ana said, hoisting Lucia up onto her hip. "You can get dressed first and meet us down there afterwards. Okay?"

"Okay," Christian nodded reluctantly. Ana smiled and pecked him on the lips before turning to walk out of his study. Lucia gazed at him from over Ana's shoulder with her large brown eyes - she reached out a tiny little hand toward him, and Christian couldn't help but smile and wave goodbye in response. She beamed happily back before she and Ana disappeared out the door, and Christian couldn't help but let the smile linger on his face.

 _Yep, definitely going soft for those two._

* * *

A couple hours later, Christian was dressed in a crisp gray power suit and was sitting in the backseat of his Audi R8, Taylor in the driver's seat and Sawyer riding shotgun. Ryan and Reynolds were following in another black Audi behind them, but that didn't exactly make Christian feel much better as they wound their way through this unfamiliar part of Seattle, the scenery around them significantly different than from where he normally commuted. The buildings around here looked derelict and dirty, their graffitied walls faded with age. Once or twice they saw a homeless person wandering around the sidewalk or sitting huddled in an alleyway.

They eventually turned onto a narrow, cracked street where the storefront sign for _Lucky's_ bar was clearly visible. Christian stared at the building as they passed - it was strange to think that that was where Elliot had gotten stabbed, which had then led to all the events that occurred afterwards. Christian noticed the alleyway off to the side of the bar, too, and remembered that that was where Lucia had been found by the authorities soon after. She had been alone and huddled next to a dumpster, with barely enough clothing to keep her little body covered.

Christian felt his fists clench on his lap - his brother getting hurt in addition to Lucia being abused and neglected like that made the anger and indignation surge up in his chest like lava bubbling under the surface. At least Elliot was about to get justice for his own pain, and Christian could take a small amount of comfort in that. But he wanted to strangle the people responsible for hurting a sweet, innocent little girl like Lucia. It made him sick to his stomach to think that people would still do that to a child.

 _Fucking lowlife cowards…_

"We're here, sir," Taylor finally announced a couple minutes later after parking on the street, and Christian pulled himself out of his thoughts to glance out the window. The police station looked a bit cleaner than the surrounding buildings, but not by much. Christian noticed a couple police officers in uniform standing around outside and talking to each other.

"Your father and brother are both inside, sir," Taylor added, and Christian nodded.

"Thanks Taylor. Let's go," he said, and the three of them finally stepped out of the car and began to move toward the police station.

The place was surprisingly dead, but then again it was only ten-thirty in the morning. A couple police officers sat behind the counter typing away at their computers, and a few people sat silently in the waiting room, one man dozing off in his seat with his beanie pulled over his eyes.

"Christian."

Christian turned and saw Elliot and Carrick walk toward him from the hallway on the other side of the lobby, accompanied by another police officer. Elliot had a clipboard in his hand, and his complexion looked green and sickly. Christian knew his brother was uncomfortable coming here under these circumstances, and immediately put a hand on his shoulder as soon as he was close enough.

"How're you doing?" he asked seriously, and Elliot pressed his lips together.

"I'm alright, all things considered," he said, attempting to sound upbeat. His expression didn't match his tone, but Christian could tell he was honestly trying to keep his chin up.

"Officer Schmidt and I are going to bring Darryl Credd out of his cell and into one of the interrogation rooms," the officer beside them said, and he pointed toward the bare-looking hallway they had just come from. "Mr. Elliot Grey and his lawyer are the only other people allowed into that room - anyone else has to wait outside."

Elliot frowned, looking like he wanted to protest, but Christian had already anticipated that as a possibility. He turned to his brother. "I'll just be over here in the waiting room - don't worry," he said. "I'm here to support you, no matter what."

Elliot looked at him before grimacing reluctantly."Thanks, man," he said sincerely. Clearly wanting to change the subject, he took a deep breath and exhaled it out. "…So how's Lucia?"

Christian couldn't help but grin and chuckle. "She's great. I'm teaching her how to play piano now, actually."

"Really?" Elliot asked, and he laughed. "Taking after her Daddy Grey after all then, eh?"

Christian gave him a commiserating look. "She's not my daughter, El."

"Not yet," he said knowingly, and Christian couldn't help but smirk and roll his eyes at him.

"So how's Kate doing?" he asked, changing the subject.

"She's doing alright," Elliot said, shrugging. "She wanted to be here with me today with you and Dad, but I wouldn't let her. It's way too dangerous in this part of the city, y'know?"

"Yeah, it is," Christian agreed. He knew he himself would have never brought Ana here - he loved her far too much to put her in this kind of danger.

"Sir, we're ready for you," the officer approached them again with a second officer in tow. Down the hallway, Christian could see a third officer leading the man he recognized as Darryl Credd down the hallway in handcuffs.

With one more glance and a nod from Christian, Elliot turned and followed Carrick and the officers down the hallway toward the interrogation room, ready to face his attacker.

Christian immediately turned to Ryan and Reynolds. "You two," he gestured at them. "Go stand outside the door of the interrogation room - get as close as you can, and interfere only if you have to. Sawyer, Taylor and I will wait out here."

"Yes sir," Reynolds said, and the two of them turned and followed the others down the hallway. Christian watched them walk away until they disappeared around the corner, and he finally turned away to walk toward the waiting room. Sawyer and Taylor immediately moved to stand guard from a short distance away.

Christian settled himself in the rather uncomfortable plastic chair a few seats away from a man in an ugly brown coat. Christian didn't pay him any mind as he crossed his ankle over his knee and pulled his BlackBerry out of his pocket, hoping to pass some time by checking through his messages.

It was mostly work-related emails he didn't have to deal with today - messages directed to Ros which he was CC'd on. There was a text with a picture attachment from Ana, and Christian opened it with a small smile on his face: it was a selfie of Ana lying on the couch in the great room, Lucia cuddled up against her shoulder. Both of them were beaming widely at the camera above them, and Christian couldn't help but smile like a loon as he looked at it. He quickly saved it and set it as his background wallpaper, happy at the prospect of looking at an adorable picture of his beautiful wife and Lucia every single day.

Christian finally looked up from his phone after several minutes, and noticed the man in the brown coat was staring at him.

Christian frowned at him for a second before turning back to his phone, trying to ignore him. After about a minute or so, he glanced back up again, and noticed the man was still looking at him.

"Can I help you?" Christian finally asked, unable to mask his annoyance. To his surprise, the man didn't look away - instead, he smiled widely at him.

"Sorry for staring," he said brightly. "You look kind of familiar to me, that's all."

Christian didn't know who the man was, so he chose to remain silent. The guy seemed to understand, however: "I don't mean to make you uncomfortable or anything - I just have a good memory for faces, that's all." He tapped the side of his head, still grinning. "You look like someone who's often been seen in public, am I right?"

He technically wasn't wrong about that, but Christian didn't really want to engage this guy in conversation more than he had to. "I suppose so."

The man was still smiling at him. "In that case, how come the brother of a supposedly-famous guy like yourself is here today?" he asked innocently.

Christian's eyes immediately snapped up and he glared at at the man - out of the corner of his eye, he saw Taylor and Sawyer step forward, ready to help if this was going to turn confrontational. The man glanced around and noticed the two security guys, and quickly held up his hands in a gesture of innocence. "Whoa, hey - I'm sorry! I just heard you and that guy over there talking, and I just guessed he was your brother. It's not a big deal, I'm not going to use the info against you or anything…"

He sounded sincere, and Taylor and Sawyer slowly stepped back to their original positions. Christian continued to stare at the man suspiciously - he didn't look particularly special. He was dressed simply enough in a faded brown leather coat, black shirt, dark jeans and boots. He looked to be about Carrick's age, with his slicked back hair and and scruffy beard looking gray around the edges. His smile was friendly enough, but there was just a certain look in his dark eyes that didn't sit well with Christian. Perhaps it was just the fact they were sitting in a seedy police station which was making him feel so suspicious.

"You're pretty observant," Christian noted, giving the man a disinterested look. "I'm sure you couldn't also tell me _why_ my brother is here?"

"Can't say I can," the man chuckled, smiling. "Although since I heard one of the officers mention Darryl Credd, I assume it's to do with that attack outside _Lucky's_ last month. Am I right?"

Christian only stared at the man, not answering, but the man seemed to take his silence as confirmation.

"That's why I'm here too, actually," he continued, and he leaned in closer to Christian. "Credd's a tenant in my building - or he _was_ at least - and since he's probably going to prison, I was hoping I could put all his stuff up for public auction. The money I'd get would cover some of the rent he hasn't paid, at least."

Christian only blinked, not entirely sure why this man was telling him this information.

"…Y'know, I didn't want to believe it was true," he continued, shaking his head morosely. "Credd… I mean, guy's a bit of a crackhead, sure, but I never thought he'd attack a person for no reason."

"So you think it was my brother's fault he was stabbed?" Christian asked, frowning angrily.

"Of course not - I'm just shocked, is all," the guy said without missing a beat. "From what I heard, the attack was unprovoked and pretty brutal. Not to mention the cops here apparently found a little girl in an alleyway near the bar where it happened…" He shook his head sadly. "It's a shame."

Christian felt his heart start to pound loudly inside his ribcage. Jesus, his guy knew about Lucia too? What didn't he know about this whole ordeal?

"You seem to know a lot about all this," Christian said, a vague note of accusation in his voice. The man understood what Christian was insinuating, but instead of being offended, he laughed.

"Oh, you know how it goes - keep your ear to the ground, and it's amazing some of the things you learn," he said with a cryptic wink. "And there's a lot of folks who'd pay out of pocket for some good information. Man's gotta eat, y'know?"

Christian wasn't sure what to say to that, and before he could think of something, one of the police officers approached the man, saying that an Officer Keely was ready for him.

"Alright, I gotta go," he said to Christian, getting to his feet. "Nice talking to you, Mr. Grey."

He walked away, and Christian could only stare after him, momentarily speechless.

 _What the hell had just happened?_

"…Who was that man?" Taylor finally approached Christian, gazing after the guy.

"Not sure," Christian said, frowning. "He seemed to know my name, though. And he knew about Elliot and Lucia too."

Christian had honestly never seen or heard of this man before, and even though he spoke with a friendly air, Christian couldn't help but feel unnerved by how much information he seemed to have about him and his family.

"I'll look into him, sir," Taylor said, just as suspicious as Christian, and he nodded.

"Good."

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry this chapter was a little short, but I hoped you liked it anyway! If you did, leave a review :)**

 **I'm not sure when I'll get the next chapter of this story out - I'm working on a little Christmas surprise for you guys that'll be out later next week, and afterwards I'm going to be busy with a lot of holiday/family stuff. Hopefully I'll have the next chapter up for you guys by the new year!**

 **If you'd like to follow my pinterest board for this story, the link is www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/inalienable-circumstances/**


	11. Domestic Bliss

**A/N: Thank you all for your reviews and support! Here's the next chapter for you.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 11: Domestic Bliss**

Ana knew that with all the extra security measures Christian had taken to the police station with him was more than sufficient, she couldn't help but feel a bit relieved when he finally came home that evening, safe and sound. Over dinner, he talked to her about Daryl Credd's sentencing, and also about the suspicious man he had encountered while sitting in the station's waiting room. While Ana did think that this guy knowing all about Elliot's attack was a bit strange, she chalked it up to him just being a private investigator who worked with the police or something, and she didn't think too much of it.

Over the course of the next few days, Ana noticed Christian at his piano a lot more than usual. Thankfully, however, it wasn't under the cover of darkness at two o'clock in the morning due to his nightmare-induced insomnia - it was actually because he was teaching Lucia how to play the piano. He insisted that she had a gift, and Ana found herself agreeing with him - she noticed that Lucia was able to pick up on certain concepts like playing a series of notes on the piano much quicker than the average four-year-old. Christian was right, she was definitely going to be a prodigy someday.

The first full song Christian was able to teach her on the piano was Mary Had A Little Lamb. It had taken a few days of practice for her to remember all the notes, but by the end of the week, she was able to play a slow, rather choppy version of it without Christian's assistance. Her little one-fingered piano recital resulted in Christian and Ana - who was sitting beside him and Lucia on the piano bench - applauding excitedly once she was done. The huge smile on Lucia's face showed that this moment was well worth the long days of practice.

"You did an awesome job, Lamb!" Christian praised, and he picked Lucia up off the piano bench beside him and placed her on his lap. "That was amazing!"

Lucia giggled happily as Christian hugged her around the middle, but Ana couldn't help but frown at Christian when she heard the name he had called Lucia.

"Did you just call her Lamb?"

Christian glanced up at Ana, apparently surprised that he had said that out loud. "Oh. Um… yeah I did," he said, sounding almost embarrassed. "I've been teaching her 'Mary Had A Little Lamb', so it's just the nickname I've been calling her when we're at the piano together. I know, it's kind of stupid…"

"No, I like it," Ana said, smiling widely up at him. "It fits her perfectly." She turned to look down at Lucia and playfully tickled her tummy. "Do you like that, sweetie? Are you our cute little Lamb?"

Lucia let out a series of squealing giggles as Ana tickled her, and she tried to squirm away by turning her body into Christian's chest, hiding from Ana's attack. Christian hugged her tightly in a protective manner, laughing along with the girls.

For the rest of the afternoon, the three of them stayed home together, playing and goofing around like the little family they were.

* * *

The rest of the week passed by uneventfully enough, and Saturday finally rolled around. Ana woke up that morning feeling an odd combination of excitement and dread - in a couple hours, Gia Matteo was going to come by Escala to go over the plans for their new house on the Sound. While Ana was very excited to finally get the ball rolling with her and Christian's new home project, she was definitely not looking forward to Gia being here and overtly making 'fuck-me' eyes at Christian every time he looked her way. It was annoying as hell, and even though Christian never gave Gia any reason to think that he was responding to her advances, Ana still hated watching it. How would Christian feel if Gia was a male architect making sexual advances toward _her_? That guy would be gone before any of them could blink, Ana was sure.

Christian and Ana had talked a bit about possibly hiring a different architect - one who wasn't some doe-eyed female drooling all over Christian - but they were kind of stuck with her because she was the best architect in the city. Plus, he and Ana were pretty much finished with the design of the new house, meaning they likely never had to work with Gia ever again after all this.

Ana sighed as she lay in bed, gazing up at the ceiling. _It'll all be over soon…_

"Nngh," Christian groaned from beside Ana, rousing from his sleep. His arm which he had thrown around her waist shifted slightly, lightly grazing his hand along her hip and causing goosebumps to rise where he touched. "…'Morning, baby."

"Good morning," Ana smiled at her husband. She thought his sleep-rumpled copper hair looked positively adorable.

"What time is it?" he muttered, moving his hand up and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"Almost eight. I've only been up for a few minutes, but I was about to go take a shower soon. Gia's coming at nine o'clock, remember."

Christian groaned deep in his chest, a combination of sleepy and annoyed. "Ugh, I forgot."

Ana sat up in bed and stretched her arms above her head. "I know, but we have to. Come on, we should get up now."

Christian yawned widely before reluctantly sitting up and swinging his legs to the side of the bed. "I'll go wake up Lucia."

… _Lucia._

Being reminded of her gave Ana a sudden idea, and she slowly began to smile as her idea took form within her mind.

 _That might actually work._

"Christian?" Ana asked as Christian was about to step out the bedroom door. He stopped and looked at her.

"What?"

Ana bit her lip. "You know how Gia's always flirting with you and it's really annoying?"

Christian frowned and sighed, clearly not wanting her to mention it. "Baby, I'm sorry - I know it's uncomfortable for the both of us, but Gia's the best architect in the city. We won't have to deal with her for much longer anyway…"

"I know," Ana assured him. "I understand all that, but… I sort of have an idea to make her stop flirting with you, and I was wondering if you'd be interested."

Christian raised his eyebrows, clearly curious as to what she was thinking. A small smile spread across his lips. "What's your plan, baby?"

* * *

At nine o'clock on the dot, Gia Matteo stepped out of the elevator and into the Escala penthouse. As was usual for her, she looked utterly immaculate, like she had just stepped off the pages of a high-end fashion magazine. She was wearing a royal blue low-cut button down blouse with a slimming gray pencil skirt and black pumps, her long blonde hair hanging in soft curls around her shoulders. Her deep red lipstick and smoky eyeshadow made it look like she was going out to a classy night club rather than meeting with clients at their home on a Saturday morning.

Ana was the one waiting for Gia in the foyer, hoping the friendly smile on her face hid her true feelings toward the woman sauntering toward her.

"Good morning, Ana," Gia said brightly to Ana, her wide smile on her beautiful face doing a decent job of hiding her true, uncharitable feelings. She moved forward and pecked Ana on the cheek. "Oh, I'm sorry - did I catch you at a bad time?" she asked condescendingly, glancing over Ana's outfit.

"No, not at all," Ana assured her kindly. At all of their previous meetings, Ana had attempted to dress up a little in order to look presentable, but today she had purposefully opted for a casual white and blue striped tank top and black leggings. Next to Gia's sexy ensemble, Ana looked like a simple college girl going to class, and the smug expression on Gia's face as she gave Ana's outfit a onceover was clear as day.

 _Game on, bitch_.

"Let's move into the kitchen, shall we?" Ana suggested sweetly, and she led Gia over to the breakfast bar, where she had cleared a space for them to work. "Can I get you something to drink? Coffee? Water? Juice?"

"Oh, no thank you Ana - I'm good," Gia said in that faux sweet voice she always employed when speaking to Ana in particular. She eased herself onto one of the barstools before glancing around. "Will Christian be joining us today?"

"Oh yeah, he's just upstairs," Ana said, smiling. "He should be down in a minute. Our weekend mornings lately have gotten so busy, you know…"

"Oh please, don't worry about it," Gia said kindly, waving her manicured hand. "I'll just get set up while we wait, is that okay?"

"Sounds great," Ana smiled as she moved toward the espresso machine to make herself a cup of coffee. Her back was to Gia as she worked, and when she discreetly glanced over her shoulder, she noticed Gia hadn't started setting up yet - she was currently adjusting her cleavage inside of her low-cut blouse and straightening her shoulders so her boobs stuck out more; she shot a covert glance over at the staircase leading up to the bedrooms, clearly hoping Christian would walk in and catch of glimpse of her looking all sexy. Ana pressed her lips together before turning back to the coffee machine, trying to contain her anger.

 _Deep breaths, Ana. She'll get what's coming to her…_

Finally, sounds of movement came from the staircase, and Ana and Gia both looked up to see Christian walking around the corner, wearing a black t-shirt and gray sweatpants while carrying a pajama-clad Lucia on his hip.

"Good morning," Christian said brightly, walking into the kitchen. He hoisted Lucia up higher on his hip. "Look who finally woke up."

Lucia's head was resting sleepily on Christian's shoulder, her long black hair pulled back in a ponytail while her little legs dangled beside Christian's knees.

"Good morning, sweetheart," Ana cooed, walking toward her and Christian. She pecked Christian on the lips before turning toward Lucia and pressing a loving kiss to her cheek, rubbing a hand along her back. Lucia, as tired as she was, only reacted by nuzzling her face deeper into Christian's shoulder, and both he and Ana chuckled as they smiled sweetly at her.

"Come on Lamb, let's get some breakfast for you," Christian smiled, beginning to move toward the kitchen. He finally noticed Gia sitting at the breakfast counter. "Oh - good morning, Ms. Matteo."

Gia didn't respond - she seemed to have become struck dumb the moment she saw Christian walk in carrying a little four-year-old girl on his hip. The expression on her face was priceless, and Ana had to bite back her giggle.

"Um… g-good morning, Christian," she stammered after a moment, blinking bemusedly at him and Lucia. Her smug sexual vixen had completely left the building at this point. "Wh… um…?"

She looked at Lucia, clearly wanting to ask who she was without seeming rude. Christian glanced at Gia and then at Lucia.

"Oh. This is Lucia - she's a foster child Ana and I have been taking care of for the past couple months now," Christian said. He sat down on the far opposite side of the breakfast counter with Lucia on his lap. "Lamb, this is Miss Gia... she's helping us make a house."

Lucia was still a bit shy around strangers, and her only response to being introduced to Gia was to snuggle deeper into Christian's lap. Christian wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tightly, and Gia seemed to be able to do nothing but stare at him in utter surprise.

"Here you are, sweetheart," Ana walked over to Lucia and placed a bowl of strawberry yogurt with granola and a sippy cup in front of her. "And what can I get for you, baby?"

"Whatever you're having, baby," Christian smiled sweetly up at her, and Ana smiled back. She leaned down and kissed him gently on the lips.

"I'm having some coffee right now, but I was just about to make omelets and toast," Ana said, moving over toward the stove and grabbing a nearby frying pan. "Does that sound okay to you?"

"Sounds great, hon," Christian said before taking Lucia's bowl of yogurt and stirring in the granola for her.

Ana turned back to the stove, not before catching a glimpse of the expression on Gia's face. This almost over-the-top portrayal of domesticity between her, Christian and Lucia was obviously the last thing Gia had expected to encounter when coming over this morning. Her plan on seducing Christian today was obviously not going to happen while a small child was in the room who the man himself was too busy doting over.

 _Too bad, bitch - find your own husband._

Ana was busy cooking breakfast at the stove, and Christian was busy feeding Lucia her yogurt, leaving Gia to sit there in uncomfortable silence as she waited for Ana and Christian to give her their full attention.

"Um... so, Christian," Gia cleared her throat, obviously trying to diffuse the awkwardness with polite small-talk. "Do you have to go into work today?"

"No, my wife and I are both staying home with Lucia today," Christian answered, barely looking up at Gia. "Once we're done looking over the blueprints here, I think she and I going to take Lucia down to the park for a bit."

"Oh," Gia said, as if surprised by that. "Um… that sounds fun." She hesitated a moment before giving him a small, forced smile. "I've never seen you be a dad before, Christian. It's almost odd."

"What's so odd about it?" Christian looked up at Gia, staring at her rather coldly. Gia looked uncomfortable, and stammered a bit:

"I-I just mean that you've always lived this sort of bachelor life, and I've never even seen you with a child before now…"

Christian glared at her. "And yet here I am with Ana fostering a four-year-old girl. Sometimes that's just the way life works - I mean, I'd never considered the possibility of getting married before, but yet I ended up falling in love with the most beautiful woman in the entire world," Christian glanced over at Ana, hoisting Lucia up higher on his lap. "My life has changed a lot within the last few months, Ms. Matteo, and I'd be foolish to pretend like it doesn't have some sort of an effect me."

Ana felt a small, proud smile form on her face as she plated her and Christian's finished omelets.

"Of course," Gia said, and Ana could practically hear how forced her smile was. "That's wonderful for you, Christian. And once you and Anastasia move into this new house, you two can start filling it with real children!"

She was obviously just trying to lighten the mood, since Christian was acting so cold to her, but her statement seemed to have had the opposite effect on him. "'Real children'?" Christian repeated with a frown, and Gia's smile faded. "So you're saying Lucia's not a _real_ child?"

"Oh… no Christian! I-I just meant…" Gia stammered, her face going red. "I meant… you know… biological children. Starting a family and everything…"

Christian still stared at her impassively. "Ms. Matteo, you do realize _I_ was once a foster child, right?"

Ana had to stifle a laugh at that one - she had finally finished plating up her and Christian's omelets, and she took them in her hands before turning around in time to see Gia's pale, sickly face after what Christian said to her. It was time to finally put this blonde bimbo out of her misery.

"Breakfast is ready," she said brightly, placing Christian's food in front of him before sitting down beside him with her own plate. "Sorry for keeping you waiting, Gia. Are you ready to go over the house plans now?

"Oh, of course!" Gia said quickly, clearly grateful to Ana for changing the subject. "I have the blueprints right here, Mrs. Grey, if you'll allow me…"

She pulled the rolled-up blueprints out of her bag, and for the next hour and a half or so, Ana and Gia went over the updated plans for the new house on the Sound. Christian mostly stayed out of the discussion - he asked a question here or there, but he mostly occupied himself with Lucia. He had found a pad of paper and some crayons for her to color with, and had made up a game for her by asking her to help them draw a picture of what she wanted their new house to look like. Needless to say, Lucia had a great time drawing her interpretation of what a house looked like - a red box with a bunch of blue and green squiggles around it.

Finally, around eleven o'clock, they wrapped up the meeting, and Gia seemed thoroughly relieved to be getting out of there. She said a polite goodbye to the both of them before walking toward the elevator, her arms full with her things.

Once she was gone, Ana turned to look at Christian, one eyebrow raised as she gazed at him. Christian turned to Ana, trying but failing to hide his amusement.

"What?" he asked after a moment, a smile spreading across his face.

Ana shook her head, biting back her own smirk. "You don't think you overdid it a little bit there, Grey? I told you Gia would be turned off by you acting all domestic and stuff. You didn't have to go and jump down her throat with that whole foster child thing."

Christian's smile faded into a scowl. "She didn't have to say anything about it, and then she went ahead to say foster children weren't _real_." His scowl deepened, and he shook his head. "That woman has been getting on my last nerve for the past few weeks now, and that was just the last straw. If Lucia wasn't here, I would've really torn her a new one."

"I'd pay to see that," Ana said amusedly. "But she's gone now, baby, and we probably won't have to deal with her again. Let's just try to take comfort in remembering that."

Christian smiled. "I will."

Ana smiled back before taking their empty breakfast plates over to the sink. "…So you said you wanted to take Lucia to the park this afternoon?"

"Yeah. I mean, it's a nice day out, and I found this park a few blocks away I think Lucia would like. What do you think, Lamb?" he asked Lucia still sitting on his lap.

"Yeah!" she said brightly, and Ana and Christian both laughed.

"Sounds like fun. As long as there aren't any single mothers there who start hitting on you around Lucia, I think it'll be fine," Ana joked.

Christian looked at her, confused. "Why would single mothers hit on me? I thought women were turned off by domesticity."

"No - _Gia_ was turned off by you acting all domestic because she just wanted to have sex with you. Most women think fathers to young children are very attractive," Ana explained.

Christian looked utterly flabbergasted, so much so that Ana had to bite back a giggle. "You women are so weird."

Ana rolled her eyes, amused. "Yes, we really are."

* * *

 **A/N: Hope you all liked this chapter! If you did, please review :)**

 **I'm so excited so many of you enjoyed my little Christmas oneshot Love on Michigan Ave! :) I've gotten a lot of requests to continue it, but I'm most likely not going to - I always intended it to be a oneshot, and I am perfectly happy with the way I ended it (#sorrynotsorry! lol)**

 **Anyway, if you'd like to follow my pinterest board for This Life of Ours, the link is www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	12. Halloween

**A/N: Thank you for all your reviews and support! I hope you enjoy this next chapter.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing**

* * *

 **Chapter 12: Halloween**

"Do I seriously have to go out looking like this?" Christian groaned.

Ana giggled, giving her husband an amused onceover. "Yes, dear husband, you do."

It was about 2 o'clock in the afternoon on Halloween, and, thanks to Ana's constant begging, Christian had agreed to take her and Lucia out trick-or-treating in the Bellevue neighborhood this afternoon. Unfortunately, that also meant he had to dress up in a costume along with her and Lucia.

"I feel ridiculous," Christian moaned grumpily. He was wearing a pirate's costume of Ana's choosing, complete with a ruffled white shirt, brown vest, black pants and knee-high boots. He even had an eyepatch and a three-point hat that looked very authentic, but Ana still found to be highly amusing. She managed to bite back her laughter as she smiled at him.

"You look great, baby," she assured him before gesturing to her own outfit. "Plus, we match! This'll be fun, I promise."

Ana was also dressed in a pirate costume, though hers was a bit different than Christian's: her black knee-high boots had a small heel to them, and on her head she wore a red bandana instead of a pirate's hat.

"I still don't have to like it," Christian frowned, adjusting his vest as if it was making him uncomfortable

"Everyone's going to be wearing costumes tonight, Christian - even the adults," Ana promised when he still didn't look reassured. She moved forward and wrapped her arms around his neck, and his hands automatically went to her waist. "You really do look great, baby."

"Thank you," Christian gave her a small, reluctant smile. "And you look pretty cute yourself, Mrs. Grey."

Ana giggled. "Don't you mean 'aye aye matey'?"

"No, I don't," Christian deadpanned, and Ana laughed.

"Oh, you're no fun."

Christian rolled his eyes, a small smile once again breaking out across his face.

"…Mr. Grey? Mrs. Grey?"

Ana and Christian looked up to see Gail walking down the staircase, smiling as she carried Lucia in her arms. Lucia looked utterly adorable in a little green and red parrot costume, and the huge smile alighting her tiny face made it clear she was as excited for tonight as Ana was. Even if her four-year-old brain wasn't entirely sure of what they were going to be doing, she seemed to be just excited to be wearing her silly parrot outfit right now.

"Hi sweetie," Ana cooed happily as soon as she saw Lucia. She and Christian approached Gail as Ana took Lucia out of her arms. "Aren't you just the cutest little parrot ever?"

Lucia giggled, and both Ana and Christian smiled at each other.

"Gail, she looks amazing," Ana praised happily, and Gail smiled.

"Do you mind taking a few pictures of us before we head out?" Christian asked Gail, handing her his phone. Gail stared at it for a second, surprised.

"Oh, um… of course, sir. I'd be happy to." She suddenly beamed widely at him before taking his phone from him. She held it up as Christian wrapped his arm around Ana and Lucia, bringing them all together so they could smile brightly at the camera.

"Say cheese!" Gail said before snapping a couple pictures of them. Ana and Christian were both smiling at the camera, but Lucia seemed unable to focus on anything in particular. Despite that, Gail was still able to get a decent-enough shot of her face, so the picture still looked good.

"Your mom's gonna love this," Ana said, smiling as Gail handed back the camera and they looked at the screen.

"She's not gonna believe it's real," Christian said humorously, taking the phone from Ana's hand. "I don't think I've ever dressed up in a Halloween costume before in my entire life."

"Another first, Mr. Grey," Ana winked, and Christian couldn't help but laugh. Ana glanced over at Lucia, still in her arms. "Don't you think Mr. Christian looks handsome, sweetie?"

"Hands-sum!" Lucia exclaimed happily, and Christian and Ana both laughed.

"Why thank you, Lamb," Christian smiled, leaning over and kissing her on the cheek. She giggled, and the strong affection he had for Lucia immediately filled his heart. He could hardly believe that only a few short months ago, he didn't even think he had a heart that could contain any sort of love or affection for anyone - yet here he was, standing in the presence of the two girls who meant more to him than he could possibly say. He'd be devastated if anything happened to either one of them.

"Are we ready to go yet, Captain Grey?" Ana asked jokingly, moving over to the kitchen to grab her things as well as the bucket Lucia was going to use for holding candy.

Christian sighed, still with a small smile on his lips. "Aye aye, matey," he said, somewhat resignedly.

* * *

Considering the fact it was almost November, it was rather chilly today in Bellevue, with the afternoon bringing in overcast clouds and cold winds. Thankfully, Christian, Ana, and Lucia's costumes were relatively warm, and Ana had the foresight to bring along Lucia's coat just in case it got too chilly. Lucia didn't seem to mind the cold weather, however, since she was distracted by the multitude of kids dressed up in costumes walking from house to house, receiving candy while laughing and talking happily with each other. Lucia, like how she often was when she didn't know how to act, merely stood quietly and stared at everyone around her as if transfixed.

"I figured we could start right here," Ana said once Taylor had dropped them off and helped them unload their things. She pointed at the nearest house. "Your parents' estate is a little less than a mile down the road, so I figured we can stop once we get there, and that way Lucia can trick-or-treat at all the houses in between."

"I don't know, is a mile going to be too long for her?" Christian asked, trying not to sound too worried.

"Don't worry - it's not even a mile," Ana assured him. "And if Lucia get's too tired, one of us can just carry her. It'll be fine."

Christian grimaced, still seeming a bit worried as he glanced down at Lucia. "Alright then… ready to go, Lamb?"

Lucia's only response was to bounce happily on her toes and reach up to take Christian's hand in her own. Christian smiled down at her before leading her up the walkway to the first house - her tiny legs scurried to keep up with his, and her candy bucket swung from her other hand.

Ana beamed as she watched the pair walk away, and she couldn't resist taking out her phone and snapping a couple pictures of the adorable scene before her.

The first house they went to could've gone a lot better - Lucia was far too shy to say anything to the old lady who answered the door, even with Christian and Ana's gentle coaxing. The woman at the door was very kind, however, and gave Lucia a piece of candy anyway. Christian had managed to get her to say a polite thank you before they moved to the next house.

The next few houses got a little easier. Lucia was still extremely shy talking all these new and strange people, but she slowly began to figure out that speaking to them got her praise from Christian and Ana as well as free candy. She also seemed braver saying trick-or-treat to strangers at their doorstep when Christian was holding her in his arms and she was eye-level with the adults.

"Tick o' tweat!" Lucia said confidently when a middle-aged woman answered the door, holding out her half-full bucket of candy. The woman smiled kindly at Lucia.

"Well, hello there," she said sweetly, picking up a bag of candy that was sitting on a table off to the side. "Are you a little birdie, sweetheart?"

Lucia shook her head. "Pay-wot!"

Christian, Ana and the woman all chuckled at how cute she was being. "Oh, how adorable," she smiled, glancing at Christian and Ana's costumes. "And pirates too! The three of you go together."

"Her idea," Christian nodded toward Ana, though he had a smile on his face. Ana and the woman both laughed.

"Well, it was worth it - your daughter looks very happy," the woman commended them.

Christian and Ana exchanged a glance, unsure of how to respond to that. The woman seemed to notice their hesitation and her smile faded.

"Oh, I'm sorry - is she not your daughter?" the woman inquired politely.

"Sort of," Ana said truthfully,

"Lucia's our foster child," Christian explained. "My wife and I have been taking care of her for the past few months now."

The woman's eyebrows shot up, clearly shocked by that. "Really?" she said, almost taken aback by that information. She looked between them for a moment, as if wondering if they were joking. "Wow," she said after a few seconds. "Good for you."

Ana and Christian glanced at each other, feeling a little uncomfortable by her praise. "Um… thank you." Ana said after a moment, blushing.

The woman smiled at them after a second. "I'm sorry - I work in public office and I've sometimes had to deal with foster families. It's nice to see a young couple such as yourselves use the system to take care of a child rather than taking advantage of it for government stipends."

Christian almost had to laugh at that - the weekly government stipend that had been offered to (and refused by) him and Ana was laughably small compared to what he made in just an hour.

"Well, Lucia here needed a home," Ana went on, looking over at the little girl in Christian's arms. "And despite everything she's been through, we still love her and want her to be happy."

Christian could hear the sincerity in Ana's voice, but he knew she was uncomfortable talking about such a personal topic with a stranger. He made the decision to quietly steer away from this conversation.

"Baby, we should probably get going," he said to Ana, checking his watch. "My mother's waiting for us."

"Oh - right," Ana nodded, turning back toward the woman. "Sorry, we should really be going. But it was nice meeting you."

They said goodbye to the woman, who was sweet enough to put an extra piece of candy in Lucia's bucket, before they all walked away toward the sidewalk. Ana and Christian were silent for a few seconds as they walked along, Lucia still in Christian's arms.

"That was awkward," Christian stated bluntly, and Ana couldn't help but giggle.

"A little. She was nice, though," she said fairly, and Christian shrugged before nodding.

"Yeah… but if anyone else assumes Lucia's our daughter, maybe we should just let them assume she is," Christian suggested. Ana thought for a second before nodding.

"Sure."

For the next twenty minutes, the three of them continued trick-or-treating along every house up until they reached Christian's parents' house. Thankfully, none of the people who answered the doors made much small-talk, and Christian, Ana and Lucia made it to the Grey Estate in good time.

Grace was the one who answered the door, and she laughed in delight the moment she got a good look at her son.

"Oh my goodness!" she laughed, pressing a hand to her heart in delight.

"Trick-or-treat," Christian grinned, hoisting Lucia up on his hip. Ana and Grace both laughed.

"Oh, my dear, you look fantastic!" Grace smiled, looking over all of them. "You all do! Oh my goodness, I have to get some pictures of you…"

She ushered them inside, and Christian gently set Lucia down on her feet as soon as they were within the spacious foyer. Grace went in search of her camera, and at that moment, Mia entered the room.

"Oh my God!" Mia laughed as soon as she saw the three of them. "You guys look amazing! Oh, Lucia looks so cute as a little parrot…!"

Grace reentered the room with her camera, and after taking at least two dozen pictures of them posing in their costumes, the whole group moved into the great room for tea.

"So where's Dad?" Christian asked as they sat down on the large sectional. He finally took off his pirate hat and eyepatch and placed them aside.

"He had to work late at the office - something about a new case," Grace explained, settling herself down at Christian's side. They all watched Lucia eagerly sit down on the carpet and dump out her bucket of candy on the ground.

"She really is adorable, Christian," Grace said to her son, smiling as she watched Mia sit down with Lucia on the ground and help her go through her haul of candy. "I've never seen her look this happy - or you, for that matter."

"Oh, I think I've been this happy before," Christian turned and smiled at Ana, who blushed and beamed back.

"Of course you have, dear," Grace said, smiling between Christian and Ana. She reached over and patted his hand. "I've loved seeing you become a happier person since you met this wonderful woman, but there's just a certain kind of joy one gets from having a family to come home to at the end of the day. Though it can sometimes be difficult to raise a child, it's also wonderful and fulfilling, and there's no better feeling in the world seeing them grow up and watch them become the people they were always meant to be."

Ana and Christian looked at each other, their eyes conveying some unspoken message. They simultaneously turned to look down at Lucia, who was giggling happily as she sorted through all her candy. Christian felt an odd sensation settle in his chest, and he somehow knew Ana was feeling the same thing as him. It was hard to explain, but it was as if he had finally come to a decision regarding Lucia…

It was what he had always known deep down inside his heart, but hadn't wanted to admit to himself for a long time.

He just hoped Ana felt the same way.

* * *

Later on in the evening, Christian, Ana and Lucia were back at Escala - Lucia had been completely wiped out from trick-or-treating this afternoon, and she slept throughout the ride home. Ana had managed to wake her up long enough to change her out of her parrot costume and feed her dinner, but pretty soon she was out again, and Ana and Christian decided to just put her to bed early.

"She is so sweet," Ana smiled down at Lucia's sleeping form, and Christian put his arm around Ana's shoulders as he gazed down at her too. "I think she had a lot of fun tonight."

"Well, I believe it had a lot to do with all the candy she got," Christian said humorously. "It's probably a good idea if we only let her have a couple pieces a day from now on."

"Agreed," Ana nodded, still staring down at Lucia. She hesitated a moment or two before speaking again. "I think we should adopt her."

Christian didn't say anything for a moment, but he slowly moved his arm off of her shoulders. Ana gradually turned to look up at him, and Christian turned to gaze down at her.

"You do?"

Ana nodded, looking a bit nervous. "Yeah… I've been thinking a lot about what your mother said tonight, about raising a family and stuff, and I realized… I want us to have that with Lucia. I know it might be kind of soon for us to consider something like adoption, and I realize that she's not biologically ours -"

Christian cut Ana off, however, by taking her face in his hands and pressing his lips to hers in a searing kiss. Ana was surprised for a moment before melting into his kiss, moving her hands up and tangling her fingers in his hair. After a few seconds, Christian slowly broke the kiss, staring down into her eyes.

"Let's do it," he said quietly, a smile on his lips.

Ana stared at him for a second, her blue eyes wide with shock. "Really?"

Christian nodded confidently, a smile still on his face, and Ana let out a small squeal before practically leaping into his arms, wrapping her arms and legs around his body in a tight hold. Christian stumbled backward slightly, wrapping his arms around Ana and trying not to laugh with Lucia sleeping so close by.

"Baby, we need to be quiet," Christian whispered, chuckling. Ana ignored him as she pressed tiny kisses all over Christian's face - his cheeks, chin, forehead, and even eyelids. Christian grinned widely as he carried Ana out of Lucia's room and toward the master bedroom.

"I love you so much, Christian," Ana whispered, finally ceasing her kisses to press her forehead to Christian's with a smile on her face. Christian simply pressed a tender kiss to her lips, conveying his own deep love and devotion to her and the decision they had made regarding their family.

"I love you too."

* * *

Christian woke up in bed the next morning, naked and spooning his beautiful wife in his arms. The two of them ended up making love multiple times last night in celebration of their decision to adopt Lucia - Christian couldn't explain it, but it felt like a weight off his shoulders knowing Lucia was going to finally be theirs. Once she will legally become their daughter, he and Ana could keep her safe.

And at the end of the day, that's what Christian needed for the people he loved the most - assurance of their safety.

Ana slowly began to rouse from her sleep, and Christian couldn't resist rubbing his hand along her naked waist. She groaned and stretched in response.

"Mm… 'morning," Ana said sleepily to Christian, blearily blinking open her eyes and smiling at him.

"Good morning, baby," Christian whispered, smiling lustfully down at her. Ana's eyes shone with love and arousal, but just as Christian leaned down to kiss her on the lips, his BlackBerry buzzed with an incoming text. He sighed before reluctantly reaching over to the end table to check his phone.

"Is it work?" Ana yawned, sitting up while tugging the duvet up so it covered her chest.

"No, it's my mom," Christian said, staring down at his phone screen. "She wants us to come by Bellevue again this morning. She didn't say why, though."

"I think you left your pirate hat there by mistake," Ana giggled. "She probably wants you to come by and get it."

"Right - 'by mistake'," Christian said sarcastically, and Ana giggled.

"Oh be quiet - you know you loved dressing up," Ana poked his arm, smiling at him. "Plus, we can tell your parents about adopting Lucia in person. I'm sure they'd love to know."

Christian smiled widely at the thought. "Yeah, they would."

Over the next hour or so, Christian and Ana quickly showered, dressed, and ate a breakfast of scrambled eggs, toast and fruit salad. Throughout the morning, Christian couldn't help but feel a pervading sense of calm - the decision he and Ana had finally made to adopt Lucia made him feel at peace with the world and his life. Just the thought of finally becoming a real family with Ana and Lucia made him happier than he ever thought possible, and he couldn't wait to tell his parents the good news.

Ana and Christian left Lucia home in Gail's care before they headed out to Bellevue. They talked the whole way there, mostly about the steps they were likely going to have to take in order to start the adoption process. After they talked about it with Grace and Carrick, they agreed to get in touch with Lucia's social worker Colleen and figure out the proceedings.

They finally arrived at the Grey Estate, and both Ana and Christian stepped out of the car after they parked. Just as they were going up the walkway to the front door, however, the door opened to reveal both Grace and Carrick stepping out onto the porch.

"Christian - Ana," Grace greeted them. "Is Lucia with you?"

Christian and Ana glanced at each other. "Um… no, we left her at home with Gail. Why?"

Carrick moved beside his wife, looking a bit strained. "Maybe we should go inside to talk about this."

"Wait, what's going on?" Ana asked, glancing between Grace and Carrick in confusion and worry.

"It's a legal matter I need to discuss with you guys," Carrick said. "Please, we should go inside to talk about it."

"Dad, just tell us what's going on," Christian said, his voice urgent. "Is something wrong?"

Carrick sighed before exchanging a resigned look with Grace. "It's Lucia," he said finally, glancing back over at Christian and Ana with a distressed look in his eyes. "A man claiming to be her father came forward last night and is now demanding custody."

Christian could only stare at his father, the blood draining from his face.

* * *

 **A/N: Oh no, a cliffhanger! Whatever shall we do?**

 **If you liked this chapter, please leave a review and tell me what you think!**

 **Also, if you'd like to follow my pinterest board for this story, the URL is www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	13. Adalay Ramkoff

**A/N: Thank you for all your reviews and support! Here's the next chapter for you.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 13: Adalay Ramkoff**

"This can't be true, Dad."

Christian, Ana, Grace and Carrick had all moved inside the house and into the great room; Ana and Grace were sitting down together on the sofa while Christian paced the area in front of the coffee table, looking distressed. Carrick only stood off to the side, his arms crossed in front of his chest while staring down at the floor.

"I'm afraid it is, Christian," Carrick said solemnly, finally looking back up at his son. "This man is claiming to be Lucia's father - he was apparently romantically involved with her mother a few years ago, and if that's true, in all likelihood he is Lucia's biological father."

Christian stopped in his tracks before squeezing his eyes shut, shaking his head before running his fingers through his hair, tugging at his locks. He was clearly trying not to break down, and Ana quickly stood up and went to his side, placing a comforting hand on his arm. Christian seemed to calm down slightly from her touch, though he still seemed upset.

"Is there any concrete proof that this man is Lucia's biological father?" Ana asked desperately, looking over at Carrick. "Did he take a paternity test?"

"Not yet. He would have to go to court and take one," Carrick said, and Christian and Ana turned to stare at him.

"You mean we don't even know if he's her real father or not?" Ana asked, looking angry. "How do we know he's not just some random guy off the street?"

"He claims he has evidence to prove that Lucia is his daughter," Carrick explained, frowning. "He's willing to present it to a judge... but considering the fact that he even knows about Lucia and is willing to fight for custody of her really makes it seem like he is her father, whether he goes to court or not."

"Well, we can't just leave it up to chance - we need to be absolutely sure," Christian said firmly. "Dad, is it possible to get a court order to make this guy take a paternity test?"

"Yes, actually - you and Ana can file a Motion for Genetic Marker Testing and an affidavit to get him to court and take a test," Carrick explained.

"Yes, let's do that!" Christian insisted, but Carrick still looked forlorn.

"It's not that easy, son," he said, shaking his head. "You guys aren't Lucia's biological parents, so the courts aren't likely to favor you in a parental action suit. Not to mention, in the affidavit you have to explicitly state the reasons why you don't believe this man could be Lucia's father, and there's really no evidence to suggest he isn't."

"Then we'll _find_ evidence!" Christian said firmly, resuming his pace around the great room. "My guys will perform a background check on him and find something to prove he isn't her father or that he's unfit to be her parent…"

"We could try, but paternity is something that's very difficult to prove or deny without an actual test," Carrick explained. "And as for him being an unfit parent… well, that could be even more difficult to prove."

"Carrick," Ana snapped at her father-in-law, and everyone looked at her in surprise. "Are you seriously forgetting the state in which Lucia was found by the authorities only a few months ago?"

No one said anything for a few moments after that, but the expression on Carrick's face was remarkably chastised. It seemed he had almost forgotten.

Ana took a deep breath: "I'm with Christian on this - whoever this man is, we can't let him take Lucia away. We don't know who he is, but considering the fact that he left his supposed daughter out by a dumpster, alone and afraid on the streets of Seattle with no food or clothing, I really don't want to know what else he is capable of. Do you?"

Carrick sighed deeply before giving Ana a small nod. "You're right, Ana. We should find a way to fight this with everything we've got."

"Do you have a file on this guy yet?" Christian asked his father, and Carrick nodded again before walking over to his briefcase sitting on a nearby table. He dug around in there for a second before pulling out a dark brown folder.

"This is just the standard check my firm does on new plaintiffs, but Welch might want to do a more thorough background check on this guy within the next few days," Carrick said, handing the folder to Christian. "His name's Adalay Ramkoff - I'm afraid we don't know much about him other than he's a landlord in the same area Lucia was found and where Elliot was hurt."

Christian opened the file, and a second later, Ana saw his face suddenly go white. His hands gripping the file started to shake as his jaw set, and his angry eyes moved up to meet Ana's.

"I've seen this guy before," he grit out, sounding angrier than Ana had every heard him before. Ana stared at him in shock as Carrick and Grace both gaped at him.

"What?!"

Christian held the file out for them to see; in the top right corner of the front page, there was a profile shot of a middle-aged man with slicked back gray hair and a goatee. "Ana, remember I told you about that guy who started talking to me at the police station?"

Ana stared at him, eyes wide. "Is that him?"

"Wait - who is that man, Christian?" Carrick asked sharply, looking between Christian and the file folder.

"He was a guy I spoke to when you, me, and Elliot went to the police station in the Jungle a couple weeks ago," Christian explained. "He was just sitting in the waiting room and he started talking to me - it was a bit weird, to be honest."

"And what exactly did he say to you?"

Christian began to recount to his parents the conversation he had had with this guy, and as he did, Ana couldn't help but frown to herself in thought. Was it just a coincidence that this man - Adalay Ramkoff as he was apparently called - claimed to be Lucia's biological father? Or was there more to it than that? Ana didn't know, but she couldn't quash the horrible feeling that there was something awful about all of this.

"So you're telling me this man already knew about Lucia when he spoke to you?" Carrick asked when Christian finished, frowning as he started to pace around the room.

"He mentioned he knew a child had been found near where Elliot was attacked, but he didn't indicate that he thought she was his daughter," Christian explained.

"So he later discovered that the child they found _was_ actually his daughter?" Grace asked.

"Maybe. Or maybe he just found out that the child he heard about is under our care," Ana said grimly. Grace, Carrick and Christian all turned to look at her, their eyebrows raised. "Think about it - this Ramkoff guy pretty much knew exactly who Christian was when he talked to him at the police station. It probably didn't take much for him to find out that Christian and I are taking care of Lucia as a foster child, and now he can take advantage of that fact."

"But what's his angle then?" Carrick asked, frowning. "Is he doing this to hurt Christian or blackmail him or something? Why would he do that by by claiming to be the biological father of his foster child?"

"For all we know, he _could_ be Lucia's father," Ana said fairly. "Carrick, you said he claimed to have known Lucia's mother? Maybe that part was actually true."

"Maybe… Christian, did you get a background check on Lucia's mother?" Carrick asked, continuing to pace the floor in thought.

"Not on her mother, no. I only got one on Lucia - since her mother's dead, I didn't see the point."

"Try to get one on the mother," Carrick said firmly. He seemed to have turned into full lawyer mode as he frowned in thought, rubbing his chin as he continued to pace the floor. "We might be able to find out more about Ramkoff if we have a clearer picture on the mother. Christian, do you feel that he threatened you at all when he spoke to you at the police station?"

"Not really," Christian said reluctantly. "He was actually pretty friendly when I spoke to him. Although I couldn't help but feel a bit unnerved by him - not by anything he said, though. It was more of a gut feeling."

Carrick frowned dejectedly before shaking his head. "A gut feeling isn't enough. However, the conditions in which Lucia was found by the bar should be enough evidence for Ramkoff to take a court-ordered paternity test, and if it ends up being positive, we can build a case against him. I just want to find more dirt on this guy if we're going to make sure Lucia doesn't end up under his care."

"I'll get Welch on it right away," Christian nodded, pulling out his cell phone.

Carrick and Christian immediately got to work hashing out this whole situation with Ramkoff - Christian spoke with Welch on the phone about getting background checks on both Ramkoff and Belinda Meekaslav, Lucia's deceased mother, while Carrick called some of the partners at his law firm, hoping to have found some other information on the plaintiff. Grace and Ana didn't know what else to do other than leave the men to it, and they both decided to go into the kitchen to put a little distance between themselves and everything that was going on. It was getting close to noon, so they agreed it was time to get started on lunch.

"Ana, dear - I can take care of that," Grace said kindly as Ana pulled the ingredients of a chicken caesar salad out of the fridge. "Why don't you go upstairs and relax for a bit?"

"No, please Grace… I want to help," Ana said imploringly. She really needed something to distract her from everything that was happening in the other room. Grace seemed to understand, thankfully, and gave her a small, sympathetic smile.

"Well, in that case… you can get started on making the salad, and I'll get started on some garlic herb piccata. How does that sound?"

The two women began to move around the kitchen, gathering the ingredients they needed for their respective dishes. Ana silently began cutting up some lettuce and cucumbers for the salad, but her heart and mind were still in the other room with her husband and father-in-law.

 _I wish I knew what's going to happen to Lucia._

"...Did something like this ever happen to you when you adopted your children?" Ana suddenly asked after a few minutes of silence. Grace looked over at Ana from the stove, where she was making the piccata pasta, and she smiled kindly.

"Thankfully no," she said after a moment. "But Cary and I always knew it was a possibility. The biological parents of a foster child are always going to be a concern when dealing with adoption, whether you deal with them directly or they crop up unexpectedly like Ramkoff did. You and Christian will be able to handle this, no matter how difficult it may be. I just know you will."

Ana sighed, not feeling very reassured. "I'm afraid how all of this is going to affect Lucia. Christian and I just want her to be safe and happy and loved - how to we know if she will be if Ramkoff gets custody of her?"

Grace gazed at her sympathetically before hesitating a moment or two, as if steeling herself to say something. "I don't know how to answer that, Ana. But… I think it's best if I tell you now dear…" she paused for a second, and Ana stared at her, her brow furrowed in confusion. "You should know that if this situation with Ramkoff escalates any more, Lucia is likely going to be the one to get affected the most. Since she's a ward of the state, the government isn't likely to favor her when it comes to a custody battle."

"What are you saying?" Ana asked, almost afraid to know the answer.

Grace continued to gaze at her sympathetically. "I'm just saying that you shouldn't be surprised if Lucia is going to be taken away by her social worker within the next few weeks because of this complicated situation. Something like that is a very real possibility for a child like her, I'm afraid."

Ana could feel her heart thumping loudly in her ribcage as she stared at Grace - while Ana knew Grace was telling her this in order to prepare her for the worst, the sudden pain she felt in her chest made her fervently wish she didn't have to hear any of that. She didn't want to know that Lucia would get taken away from her and Christian, and she _certainly_ didn't want to know that it was going to happen anytime soon.

Tears began to well up in her eyes, and before she knew it, Ana began to cry mournfully. Grace immediately walked over and pulled her into her arms in a motherly embrace, and Ana simply sobbed into her shoulder, praying to God that this whole situation would go away.

 _Please don't let them take our daughter away from us._

* * *

 **~2 hours later~**

After eating a rather subdued lunch with Grace and Carrick, Christian and Ana made their way back to Escala in silence. Neither of them really had much to say to the other, at least not anything that would make them feel better about this whole situation. There was still so much uncertainty and fear surrounding them right now, with Ramkoff and Lucia's custody and everything, and so silence felt like the only appropriate thing to do.

As they drove along into the Pike Market, Christian finally broke the silence. "I was thinking, once we get back, we should plan a day to take Lucia to the zoo. I think she'd really like to see the elephants there."

Ana looked over at Christian, who was still staring straight ahead as he drove down the street. His face remained impassive, but he shot a quick glance at Ana as he waited for her response.

"You don't have to do that," Ana said quietly, turning to stare back out the passenger side window.

"Do what?"

"Pretend that everything is normal, even though it isn't. What's the point?"

Christian sighed, his impassive face breaking into a sad, tired expression. "Ana... at times like this, being normal with Lucia is the best thing we can do for her right now. We don't know when or if social services will take her away from us. I want to make sure we have at least a few good memories with her in case we don't get to…you know..."

He trailed off, not wanting to finish that sentence, and Ana looked over at him sadly - after a moment, she reached over and took his hand in her own. Christian squeezed her hand back, no words passing between them for several minutes.

"...The zoo sounds like a good idea," Ana said quietly after a bit. Christian didn't say anything in response, though Ana didn't miss the small smile on his face as he continued to drive them through the heart of Seattle toward home.

Finally, Christian pulled the R8 into the parking garage underneath Escala, and once he parked in his usual spot, they both stepped out. They walked toward the elevators leading up to the main building, and once inside the elevator car, Christian punched in the code for the penthouse, and the doors slid shut behind them.

They began to move upward, and before Ana even knew what was happening, Christian had her pressed up against the wall of the elevator, his face inches from her own. His hands went to her waist while her palms automatically moved up to his chest, and in a split second his lips were on hers, kissing her with a fervent passion. Ana kissed him back, unsure of what this was about, and yet also somehow knowing why he was doing this. The feel of his lips against hers, the brush of his tongue, the touch of his skin… it all felt reassuring and comfortable, which was exactly what she needed at this moment.

"...We will be okay," Christian whispered firmly against her lips after a few seconds of their kiss, and he pulled away so he could gaze into her eyes. "No matter what happens… we will be okay."

Ana stared back at him, her heart hammering in her chest while her eyes filled with tears. With all the uncertainty surrounding them regarding this awful situation, she felt like she really needed to hear that.

The elevator finally dinged open at the top level, and Christian stepped away from Ana so they could both walk out into the foyer together.

Almost immediately, they heard a familiar squeal of delight come from the great room, and a beaming Lucia came running happily toward them with a smiling Gail watching from behind.

"Ah da da!" she babbled and giggled incoherently as Christian reached down and scooped her up in his arms.

"Why hello there, Lamb!" he said, smiling down at her as if he didn't have a worry in the world. "Did you miss us?"

"No!" Lucia said, grinning teasingly. Ana and Christian both laughed.

"No?" Ana asked in mock-surprise. Christian passed her over so Ana held her in her arms. "Well, _we_ missed you a whole lot, sweetheart."

Lucia only giggled as she hooked her arms around Ana's neck, holding her close. Ana pulled her in and hugged her tightly back, feeling her heart clench with affection and love for this little girl as she glanced over at Christian.

 _Love_

"We love you, sweetheart," Ana whispered into Lucia's hair. "Please know that... Daddy and I love you very, very much."

And she hoped with all her heart Lucia would remember that no matter what.

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry this was sort of a sad chapter, but I hope you all liked it anyway! A lot of you were able to guess who the man claiming to be Lucia's father was, but I know I was being kind of obvious about it lol.**

 **This chapter may have been a bit of a downer, but it's only the beginning of more drama to come. Please leave a review and tell me what you think so far!**

 **You can follow my pinterest board for this story at www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	14. Father Dearest

**A/N: Thank you for all the amazing reviews and support! I hope you all enjoy this next chapter.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 14: Father Dearest**

The next few days passed by slowly and tortuously for both Christian and Ana. They hadn't heard anything yet from social services about Lucia's care, but they were still waiting anxiously for something to happen soon - however, they weren't sure what that was exactly. Christian kept in touch with his father pretty much everyday, keeping him up-to-date on Lucia and receiving word on any possible new developments involving Ramkoff. But aside from that, there wasn't really anything urgent that had happened yet.

Lucia, thankfully, remained blissfully ignorant about this whole situation with Ramkoff and possibly being taken away by the foster system to another family. In fact, she was remarkably happy compared to when she was first brought home by the Grey's. Ana had already begun her sabbatical from Grey Publishing, meaning she was around Escala a lot more during the day, which only added to Lucia's happiness. Finally, it seemed, Lucia was getting back the childhood she had missed out in her early years of life.

Too bad she couldn't know the truth… that Ana's sabbatical may have all been for nothing, and Lucia may not even remain at Escala for much longer now.

Christian and Ana managed to sit down one evening and discuss their options regarding the Ramkoff situation, as hopeless as it seemed to them. Either they could allow Ramkoff to gain custody of Lucia and take her away, or they could fight it and try to prove to the court Ramkoff was an unfit parent, thus leaving Lucia in the foster system and still under the Grey's care. Obviously the second option was more appealing to Christian and Ana, but it didn't seem as likely to happen - they were not Lucia's biological parents, nor were they her adoptive parents. They were just two innocent bystanders who got emotionally attached to a little girl who would likely never end up being theirs.

Life was very cruel in that respect.

Christian almost seemed more upset about all of this than Ana - she knew how much he needed control in his life, and not knowing what was going to happen with all this was really eating him up inside. Ana sincerely hoped he would be able to keep it together once all this came to a head - Lucia needed him to be strong for her, now more than ever.

Monday morning the following week dawned bright and early, and Christian woke up before six o'clock to shower and dress for work. Ana didn't have to get up since she was staying home with Lucia, but Christian walking around and getting ready for the day had woken her up nonetheless. She simply lay in bed wide awake, watching him as walked out of the en suite and into the walk-in closet to put on his suit.

"Are you going to be alright today?" Ana finally asked after he emerged from the closet, fully dressed and ready to go. She propped herself up on her elbows, gazing at him.

"I'll be fine," Christian said tersely, buttoning up one of his cufflinks. "I always go to work this early."

Ana let out a small, inaudible sigh, but didn't say anything to that; instead, she got out of bed, padded over to her husband in her bare feet and wrapped her arms around his neck, holding him close.

"I love you," she whispered before leaning up and pecking him on the lips. "Have a good day at work."

Her quiet words and gentle touch softened Christian slightly, and he smiled lightly at her, leaning down and kissing her again on the lips, but this time with a little more passion than before. "Thanks, baby," he whispered after finally pulling away. "I'll let you know if my dad calls about any news regarding Ramkoff."

"Okay." Ana smiled up at him. Both she and Christian may have been stressed out for the past few days about this whole situation, but one small benefit of it seemed to be that they both had become quite affectionate toward each other, at least more so than usual. It was as if their minds and bodies knew they needed each other's love now more than ever.

Christian pecked Ana on the lips one last time before stepping away, preparing to leave for the day. "I gotta go. Have a good day, baby."

"You too."

* * *

Christian knew Ana was worried about him - these past few days had been stressful for the both of them, and they were still waiting anxiously for news about Ramkoff and the parental suit. He had hoped he could remain strong for the both of them, but the lack of control he felt regarding the whole situation made it difficult for him to keep it together. The worry and fear he felt for Lucia was akin to what he felt when he was a four-year-old abused orphan - alone in the world and afraid to trust anyone.

He hated the idea of Lucia ever feeling like that at all, and his desperation to make this whole situation better for her sake increased tenfold.

Christian and Taylor now arrived at Grey House, the sun barely peeking up over the horizon. It wasn't uncommon for Christian to come into the office this early, but today he was grateful for the distraction of being at work. He actually had some important meetings to attend today, so he tried his hardest to be in the right frame of mind for when those happened.

He worked at his computer for the first part of the morning, mostly reading his emails and checking the stock market. Andrea had already come in and had given him his morning coffee and daily itinerary; she was now setting up the main conference room for their first meeting for the day as well as printing out the financial reports for all the executives. Christian knew he demanded a lot from his support staff, but that woman really could multitask like nobody's business - she was definitely an invaluable asset to him and to Grey House.

Just as he was thinking that, Christian's BlackBerry buzzed with an incoming call, and he saw that it was Andrea herself.

"Andrea?" Christian answered, frowning confusedly. What on earth could she be calling him for now?

"Mr. Grey, I'm sorry for calling you like this, but I was summoned downstairs to handle a situation with a visitor to Grey House. He claims he's here to see you, but I can't find his name on your approved visitor's list."

"What's his name?" Christian asked distractedly, turning his focus back on his work. He didn't want to deal with this idiot wasting his time.

"He just said Ramkoff… he said you'd know that name."

Christian froze; his heart seemed to stop beating in his chest, and the blood drained from his face. For a brief second, he didn't think he had heard Andrea correctly.

 _You've got to be kidding me._

"…Ramkoff?" Christian repeated after a moment, as if needing confirmation that he wasn't going insane.

"Yes sir."

Christian immediately felt his mind go into overdrive - what on earth was he doing here? And what was he, Christian, supposed to do about it? He felt himself getting suddenly angry… how dare that sleazeball show up at his building in the middle of the work day! Christian's first thought was to have security throw him out, and maybe even get some of his team to drag him out the front doors in a humiliating public display. However, another, more curious part of him wanted to know what the hell that asshole was doing here and what he wanted from him.

 _Maybe I can finally get some answers._

"…Sir?" Andrea asked again when Christian didn't respond for several seconds. He hesitated another moment, and his curiosity finally got the better of him.

"Send him up," he finally said. "And cancel my next meeting."

"What?" Andrea sounded shocked. "Sir -!"

Christian hung up before she could finish that thought, and he immediately stood up to start pacing behind his desk. He brought his hand up and began tugging at his hair, like he often did when he was stressed - was this even a good idea? Should he have sent Ramkoff away? Christian didn't know, but he was desperate for answers - these past few days had been torture, and now that Ramkoff was here at Grey House, maybe he could finally get some of the answers he'd wanted so badly.

 _Shit, where's Taylor?_

Christian had almost forgotten about his head of security - he would definitely need Taylor to be in here if this was going to get ugly. Just as Christian was about to call him in to help him handle this whole situation, the doors to his office burst open and three men strode in.

The man Christian remembered as Ramkoff was the first one inside, and he was flanked by both Taylor and Reynolds, who were clutching onto his arms on either side of him.

"Here you are, sir," Taylor said to Christian as he and Reynolds roughly let go of Ramkoff, who stumbled away from them. "I went downstairs with Andrea the moment I heard he was here - I apologize for not letting you know sooner."

"No apology necessary," Christian said to Taylor, not taking his angry eyes away from Ramkoff. "What's he doing here anyway?"

"We're about to find out," Taylor said, glaring at Ramkoff with an equal amount of disdain.

"Now, now gentlemen - that's no way to greet a guest," Ramkoff said with an air of lightness, though his face was hard as he straightened his jacket and glanced over his shoulder at Reynolds and Taylor. "Can't even come down yourself to say hello to me, Grey? And to top it off, you get your goons here to come drag me up here like a criminal. Ever heard of common courtesy?"

"You're lucky I even gave you the _courtesy_ of meeting with you face-to-face," Christian snapped, taking an angry step toward him. "What the hell makes you think you can show your face around here, Ramkoff?"

Ramkoff raised his eyebrows at him. "Oh, I'm surprised you don't know, Mr. Grey. Or do I have to remind you of the little girl that's currently under your care?"

He stared straight at Christian as he spoke, and Christian glared right back, neither of them wanting to be the first to break and look away. Christian stared into Ramkoff's eyes, trying to get a read on his expression, but the man's face was like a mask. Christian finally decided to take action, and to do that, he needed security out of the room, at least for now.

 _So much for this not turning ugly._

"Taylor, Reynolds - out," he said brusquely, his eyes still on Ramkoff.

"But sir-" Reynolds began, but Christian interrupted him.

"Out!" he snapped, and Taylor stared at Christian for a moment before gesturing to Reynolds. The two of them both walked out of the Christian's office, closing the doors behind them.

Christian finally looked away from Ramkoff as he turned and strode back over to his desk. "How much?"

Ramkoff gazed at him for a second before scoffing. "I'm sorry, what?"

"How much?" Christian repeated more firmly, opening his top drawer and pulling out his checkbook and a pen. "How much do you want in exchange for you dropping the parental action case about Lucia?"

 _I'll pay anything you fucking want - just go away!_

Christian tried not to let his desperation show, but he was truly willing to pay anything the man wanted in exchange for him getting out of their lives forever. Ramkoff, however, simply raised his eyebrows at Christian, almost looking amused. "You think this is all about the money, Grey?"

Christian shrugged, feigning nonchalance. "I figured it was, since it would explain you being fucking stupid enough to show your ugly face in my office in the middle of the work day. So again, I ask - _how much_?"

Ramkoff crossed his arms in front of his chest, staring at Christian with what appeared to be a curious fascination. He brought one hand up to his his chin and stroked it thoughtfully. "You really care about her, don't you?"

Christian blinked. His heart seemed to stop beating in his chest, and he suddenly didn't want to have to give an answer to this asshole. "And you do?" he snapped right back, trying to deflect.

"She's my daughter, of course I care about her," Ramkoff replied smoothly. "And that's actually why I'm here today - I was hoping we could talk civilly about her guardianship, and that you'll allow me to have my parental rights over her."

Christian seethed, his anger building in his chest. "Oh really? Somehow I find that hard to believe."

Ramkoff's face twitched, his smooth facade breaking slightly as he scowled at Christian. "You know nothing about me, Grey," he said, his voice tinged with a threat.

"Don't I?" Christian asked, glaring back at him with an equal amount of malice. "Why don't you enlighten me then? Why don't you tell me why you're suddenly so interested in gaining custody of a little girl you apparently left abandoned in an alleyway next to a dumpster?"

"You know nothing," Ramkoff hissed, moving toward him angrily. "That girl's mother was the woman I loved, and Lucia is my daughter!"

He reached into his coat pocket, and next moment he pulled out a folded up Polaroid picture. He opened it and held it out for Christian to see, and Christian glanced at it - it was a picture of Ramkoff, and beside him was a beautiful, black-haired young woman, probably at least fifteen years younger than Ramkoff himself. The two of them appeared to be sitting together on an old, beat-up couch, his arm around her shoulders while both of them smiled at the camera.

Christian didn't need to question who the woman in the picture was - the resemblance between her and Lucia was uncanny. Although the woman in the picture looked rather worn out and tired, as if the last few years of her life had been difficult and exhausting.

"What the hell is this supposed to be?" Christian asked, turning to glare back up at Ramkoff. He tried to play dumb, hoping to piss him off. "A picture with you and some woman? I'd hardly call that proof of a relationship, let alone paternity of a young child."

"I have more," Ramkoff said, shoving the picture back into his pocket. "I have lots more - enough to prove to a judge that Lucia is my daughter."

"Not a paternity test though," Christian stated. He knew he was deliberately goading Ramkoff, but he really didn't care at this point.

Ramkoff glared at Christian for a moment, his expression hard. "You think you know everything, don't you Grey?" he said quietly, narrowing his eyes at him. "Assholes like you think you can have everything handed to you because you sit in these ivory towers, lording over the rest of us while getting everything served to you on a silver platter. But the truth is you have no idea what it's like to live the way I do... the way Bella and I lived before she passed away…"

"So that's why you're doing this to Lucia?" Christian interrupted him angrily. "To spite a rich guy? Give me a break."

"I'm doing this because it's what's best for my daughter," Ramkoff stated angrily, taking another step closer to Christian. "And the best thing for her would be to get her as far away from _you_ as possible!"

Christian glared at Ramkoff, practically shaking with rage. He felt his chest constrict with some powerful emotion, and he realized it was fear - fear that maybe Ramkoff was right. The darkness inside of him would never truly go away...

 _Unworthy_

He had definitely felt that emotion before. But was it really true when it came to being Lucia's father?

"You don't know anything," Christian hissed after a moment, his heart pounding in his ears.

"I know what's best for my daughter," Ramkoff replied. "I know that pricks like you don't deserve the money and power that's handed to you every day of your lives…" After a moment, Ramkoff grinned, a cruel glint in his eye. "And I know that dismantling an entire playroom doesn't wipe away the sins of the past. Does it, Grey?"

Christian's heart immediately sped up, and his anger reached a fever pitch.

 _How the fuck…?_

In a blind rage, Christian aggressively grabbed at Ramkoff's lapels, ready to beat him to a bloody pulp for even mentioning that, before the doors to his office suddenly burst open. Taylor and Reynolds both strode inside and grabbed Ramkoff by both of his arms, pulling him away from Christian before he did something he would regret.

"I'll see you in court, asshole!" Ramkoff called over his shoulder as Taylor and Reynolds forcibly dragged him out of his office. In a moment, the doors slammed shut behind them, leaving Christian all alone.

* * *

 **A/N: Ooh, the drama continues! I hope you all enjoyed that chapter - if you did, please review!**

 **Some of you are asking me how long this story is going to be - from what I have planned out right now, there's only going to be a few more chapters left and then an epilogue at the end. I don't plan on dragging this out for too long - so don't worry, I'm not going to make you suffer for a long time with this plot lol.**

 **If you'd like to follow my Pinterest board for this story, the link is www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	15. Developments

**A/N: Thank you all for your reviews and support! Here's the next chapter for you.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 15: Developments**

Christian felt like he couldn't concentrate on his work anymore since Ramkoff left the premesis, so he decided to just head back home to Ana and Lucia at around noon. The worst part about all of this was having to call Ana to tell her what happened and why he was coming home - she was clearly very shocked to hear about Ramkoff's sudden appearance, and she demanded he tell her everything. Christian hated having to recount that entire conversation to her, but he knew it was something she needed to know, so he told her everything Ramkoff said to him - everything except him knowing about the playroom. He felt he needed to tell her that part in person.

When Christian finally arrived home at around noon, he immediately saw Lucia playing with her dolls in the great room with Gail and Ana. He walked in from the foyer, and the three girls looked up at him - Ana immediately stood up and walked over to him, an anxious expression on her face.

"Hey baby," Ana whispered, and Christian immediately pulled her into his arms, seeking her warmth and comfort. "Are you okay?"

 _I am now_ , Christian thought to himself, though he didn't say that out loud and he hugged his wife tightly. "Can we go into my office? I have something I need to tell you," he said quietly so only she could hear.

Ana nodded silently, and the two of them headed upstairs to his study, leaving Gail to watch Lucia back in the great room.

"Baby, what is it?" Ana asked immediately once Christian closed the office door behind them. "I know Ramkoff's appearance upset you, but the fact that he came to your office and basically threatened you might actually be a good thing - it can help our case against him when this goes to court. Couldn't it?"

"Maybe… maybe not," Christian said grimly. He reached up a hand and began tugging at his hair fretfully. "Ana, he knows about the playroom and my old lifestyle."

Ana stared at him for a moment, her mouth gaping open slightly in shock. "What?"

Christian sighed before starting to recount the one part of his conversation with Ramkoff he hadn't told her over the phone - the part where Ramkoff indicated he somehow knew about Christian's past involvement with BDSM. Ana listened to him with rapt attention, her brow furrowed as she considered what he said.

"He must have found a way to break Escala's security," Ana asserted after thinking about it for a minute. She began to pace the area in front of his desk thoughtfully. "Or he hacked into our CCTV - those are the only explanations as to how he would know about that."

"That, or he's tracked down one of my old submissives and got her to talk to him," Christian said, still tugging at his hair.

"How would one of your old submissives know that we dismantled the playroom though?" Ana asked reasonably. "They couldn't have know that… and it's not like one of us told someone about the playroom in a casual conversation. Whatever information he has, it must be firsthand."

"Right," Christian said, shaking his head as if to clear it. He was grateful Ana was able to work through all of this logically when he was feeling too flustered to even think straight.

Suddenly, there was a sharp knock on Christian's office door and Taylor walked inside. "Sir - ma'am," he said before closing the door behind him.

"Taylor, please tell me you have some answers for us," Christian glared at his head of security, trying desperately to reign in his temper. "We had a security breach, and no one even fucking knew about it!"

"I realize that sir - we're doing everything we can to find out how he knew about that classified information," Taylor said tersely. "We have no proof yet, but I would assume he had found a way to hack into our security feed and see footage of you at home. It would at least explain how he knew your playroom had been dismantled."

"But does it explain how he knew about Christian's past in BDSM?" Ana asked. "How long could he have been spying on us to know about all that?"

Before either Christian or Taylor could answer that, there was another knock on his office door and Reynolds stepped inside. "Sir," he said to Christian.

"Did you find something?" Christian asked immediately.

"Maybe. Sawyer and I couldn't really find any evidence to suggest that Ramkoff has been following you around or had broken into Escala, but we knew he must have had a source of information regarding you and your past lifestyle."

"Did he speak to one of his past submissives?" Ana asked, frowning at Reynolds.

"No ma'am, not as far as we know," Reynolds shook his head. "Although he may have been getting personal information from somebody about Mr. Grey… somebody with intimate knowledge about his past."

Ana and Christian looked at each other, dawning comprehension on both of their faces.

"Are you referring to Elena?" Ana turned to Reynolds, her eyes wide with shock. "How on earth would she know Ramkoff?"

"She may not, as far as we're aware," Reynolds explained. "But if Ramkoff did happen to know about Elena and her involvement in Christian's life, she would have been the easiest target for him. For the past few months now, she's been going to a bar called _Tippery's_ , mostly just to get drunk and trash talk the Grey's to anyone who'll listen."

"Seriously?" Christian sounded surprised and a little disgusted. Was that really what Elena had been reduced to since he'd last seen her?

"Yep - our last security report said she has gone there every night for weeks now," Reynolds said.

"You guys have been having her followed?" Ana asked, raising her eyebrows while glancing between Reynolds and Taylor. The latter nodded.

"After Dr. Trevelyan found out about Mrs. Lincoln's involvement with her son a few months ago, she basically ostracized her from Seattle society," Taylor explained. "Now, Elena's pretty much got nothing but her hair salons, and those are losing money fast since they lost their GEH backing. She's got no family, no friends, and her life is gone to shit - all she does nowadays is drink and be bitter about the Grey family. On a security level, she's pretty much a ticking time bomb."

Ana snorted derisively under her breath, and Christian couldn't help but smirk. It was honestly a bit gratifying to learn Elena was in such a bad place right now.

 _Good riddance to bad rubbish._

"Elena is in a very vulnerable position at the moment, and somebody like her would have been an easy target for Ramkoff if he were trying to get damning information on Mr. Grey," Reynolds went on. "Sawyer's looking into it now, but she seems the most likely to be a part of this."

"Elena Lincoln and Adalay Ramkoff," Ana scoffed, turning away to look out the window. "How fucking perfect would that pairing be?"

"We shouldn't make assumptions yet - we still don't know for sure if she's involved with all this," Christian said reasonably, although secretly he was sort of hoping Elena and Ramkoff were working together so he would have an excuse to absolutely decimate her for her breach of her NDA. He turned back toward Reynolds and Taylor. "Do you know if anyone else is a suspect?"

"Possibly…"

For the next few minutes or so, Taylor and Reynolds discussed with Christian the other possible security threats, which thankfully weren't as worrying as Elena. For now, Taylor and his security team were going to delve into Ramkoff's activities for the past few weeks and see if anything else came up.

Taylor and Reynolds eventually left the office, leaving Ana and Christian alone together. Christian sighed before rubbing his hands tiredly over his face - even though he tried not to let it show, he was honestly freaked out by what Ramkoff had said to him. How in God's name could Ramkoff have known about Christian's playroom, especially after he and Ana had gotten rid of it? And what other information about Christian could he know that he wasn't letting on?

"Are you okay?" Ana asked softly, moving up to him. She wrapped her arms around his waist, and Christian's arms automatically wrapped around her.

"I don't know," he said quietly, lightly pressing his face into the side of Ana's head and closing his eyes. "All of this is just so fucked up."

"Yeah," Ana agreed sadly. Her arms tightened slightly around his waist. "Lucia's worth it, though."

Christian felt himself relax slightly, and a small smile formed on his face. Leave it to Ana to help him keep perspective about this whole situation, and he couldn't help but wholeheartedly agree with her. "Yeah, she really is."

Ana pulled back slightly so she was looking up into Christian's eyes, and she smiled slightly, though it looked more like a grimace. "We'll get through this. It might be difficult right now, but we will get through this."

Christian gazed right back at her, and he couldn't help but hope that she was right. "I know."

Ana's smile grew a bit wider and slightly happier. "C'mon, Mr. Grey," she said, stepping away from him and beckoning him toward the door. "There's a little girl out there and she's been dying to play dollies with you all day."

Christian chuckled, feeling a warm contentment in his heart with getting to spend some quality time with his girls. "Well, we can't deprive her anymore, now can we?"

Ana giggled. "Let's go."

* * *

Despite all the awful shit that had been going on for the past few days or so, Christian was able to spend a very enjoyable afternoon with both his wife and Lucia, which was exactly what he needed. After lunch, the three of them moved into the media room, where Lucia brought all of her favorite toys, crayons and coloring books for her to play with. For about an hour or so, Christian and Ana simply sat on the floor near the couch as Lucia showed them all of her favorite toys while babbling cutely about them as if they were the most interesting items in the world. After she had showed Christian her plushy elephant for about the fourth time, he playfully snatched it from her hands and hid it behind his back, pretending not to know where it went. Lucia shrieked and giggled as she tried fruitlessly to climb over Christian and get it back from him, and Ana just watched everything unfold while laughing the entire time.

Once Lucia finally got worn out from playing with her toys, Ana decided to put on a movie for them all to watch. She chose _The Little Mermaid_ , and Lucia was enraptured by it the entire run time - she sat docilely between Christian and Ana on the couch, her thumb in her mouth as she stared at the screen. She clutched the plushy elephant she managed to get back from Christian tightly in her arms.

The movie finally ended, and Ana turned to see Lucia had fallen fast asleep, her tiny head resting against Christian's bicep. Christian too had nodded off, his head resting against the back of the couch, and Ana couldn't help but smile adoringly at the two of them.

 _I love them both so much_.

Feeling her heart clench with affection, Ana got up from her seat, reached over and picked Lucia up in her arms, mindful not to wake her as she did so. Christian stirred awake when he felt Ana shifting Lucia, and he yawned and stretched before standing up too.

"Need some help putting her to bed?" Christian asked softly, shuffling after Ana out of the media room.

"No thank you," Ana whispered, smiling humorously at her husband's sleep-rumpled hair and tired face. "Why don't you go off to bed? I can handle putting Lucia down."

Christian shook his head, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "I actually have some work I need to get done right now. I would've done it earlier, but time kind of got away from me this evening."

Ana smirked at him. "Our apologies, Mr. Grey."

Christian smiled lightly before leaning down and kissing Ana chastely on the lips. "No apology necessary, Mrs. Grey. I'll see you in a bit."

"Don't work too hard," Ana said to Christian as she turned around and carried Lucia on her hip toward her bedroom. She heard Christian chuckle from behind her.

Lucia was out like a light, so Ana simply changed her into her pajamas before tucking her under the covers to sleep.

After she was all settled in bed, Ana stood over Lucia for a few moments, gazing down at her in thought. Lucia looked so happy and content, all snuggled up under the covers like that as she slept - it almost seemed like she no longer had a care in the world. She looked like any normal four-year-old child who never had to question where she came from or if she was truly loved by her parents.

 _She is loved_.

With a small sigh, Ana finally turned around and slowly walked out of Lucia's bedroom, softly shutting the door behind her. Her heart felt heavy at the moment, and she couldn't really explain why.

* * *

The next morning dawned cloudy and cold, with rain clouds coming in from the west. Even though it was technically a work day, Christian decided to stay home with Ana and Lucia before meet with his father about their case against Ramkoff. Carrick was set to come over sometime this morning, and even though Christian didn't say anything to Ana, she strongly suspected he was about to reveal to his father his past involvement with BDSM. Since Ramkoff seemed to know about it already, it was entirely possible he would try to use it against Christian in court. Carrick needed to be fully informed, if that was the case.

Christian, Ana and Lucia were all eating breakfast in the kitchen when Carrick arrived at around 9 o'clock. He smiled widely when he saw the three of them sitting together like a happy little family.

"'Morning, you guys," he said, smiling down at Lucia. "How are you today?"

"We're good, Carrick," Ana smiled back. She glanced over at Christian, and immediately noticed his less-than-pleased expression at his father's appearance. Ana reached over and squeezed his forearm gently.

"You'll be alright," she said softly, and Christian looked up at her with an unreadable expression on his face. He let out a sigh before finally turning to Carrick.

"Hey Dad. Can I have a word with you in my office right now?" he asked, getting to his feet.

"Sure thing, son," Carrick said, moving over toward him. "By the way, my firm just received the papers for your court date with Ramkoff happening in a few weeks. We can go over them now, if you'd like - we could try to form a strategy."

Christian grimaced, his face impassive. "That sort of relates to what I wanted to talk to you about, actually."

Carrick raised his eyebrows in surprise, but didn't say anything as he followed Christian upstairs to his study. Ana watched them leave, trying not to feel too worried about her husband.

After Ana had finished feeding Lucia breakfast, she took her into her bedroom to get her dressed and ready for the day. When they were done, Christian and Carrick still weren't out of the study yet, so Ana decided to bring Lucia and some of her toys out to the great room for them to play with for a bit. Lucia didn't seem to want to play with any of her toys, however - instead, she climbed up on the piano bench and started pounding discordantly at the keys. Amused, Ana perched Lucia on her lap at the piano and allowed her to play the piano for a bit, as long as she wasn't too noisy about it.

Finally, about an hour later, Carrick and Christian emerged from his study. Ana watched them a bit apprehensively - Carrick's face seemed a little paler than when he had come earlier, but he still offered Ana and Lucia a kind smile when he approached them.

"Hey you two," he said quietly. "I have to get going now, but I'll see you guys later. Alright?"

"Alright," Ana stood up from the bench with Lucia in her arms, and gave her father-in-law a one-armed hug. "Say 'bye-bye' Lucia."

"Buh-bye," Lucia squealed, and Carrick chuckled.

"Goodbye, Lucia."

Carrick glanced over at Christian, who was standing off to the side with his hands in his pockets. Carrick walked over to his son and held out his hand to shake, and Christian immediately took it, looking a bit surprised. They shook hands, and Carrick offered him a paternal smile.

"We'll be in touch, son," he said quietly. "Thank you for telling me everything."

Christian blinked at him for a moment, clearly a bit surprised. He finally nodded, remaining silent.

Carrick said goodbye to Ana and Lucia one last time before turning and walking toward the elevators, Taylor trailing after him.

Once they were gone, Ana turned to Christian. "Are you alright?"

Christian let out a sigh. "I think so," he said before shaking his head bemusedly. "I'm kind of in shock… I told him about my past lifestyle and he's not completely disgusted with me."

"Of course he isn't," Ana said, as if it were obvious. "He's your father - he's going to love you no matter what."

"Yeah, but after hearing _that_ ," Christian frowned to himself. "I don't know how I could ever look him in the eye again."

"Did you go into explicit detail or something?" Ana raised her eyebrows in surprise and alarm.

Christian immediately shook his head. "God no - I didn't even tell him about me being involved with Elena, although I think he does know a little bit about that. I just told him the basics about what I used to do and how I decided to move away from all that since I met you. I figured that would be enough information if Ramkoff tries to use that against us in court."

"That's good," Ana nodded, hoisting Lucia up higher on her hip. "Carrick should know about it - not only will he be better prepared in court, but you finally were able to break down one of the walls you'd built around yourself your entire life. I'm proud of you, baby."

Christian looked into Ana's eyes, and after a moment, a soft smile spread across his face. It was the shy smile Ana had grown to adore, and she couldn't help but smile back at him.

The elevator dinged once again, and Taylor stepped out of it into the foyer. He looked anxious about something.

"Mr. Grey," he said warningly, and Ana and Christian looked up at him.

Following Taylor out of the elevator were two people - one of them was a tall man who looked to be in his mid-thirties with dark brown hair and a bomber jacket. The other was Colleen, Lucia's social worker.

Ana felt her blood turn cold.

"Mr. and Mrs. Grey?" Colleen gazed at Ana and Christian from across the great room. She then gestured to the man beside her. "This is my colleague at social services, Mr. Richard Merton. May we have a word with you?"

Christian turned to look at Ana, who gazed back at him. They both knew what was happening, and that didn't make them any less afraid of what was to come.

"What is this regarding?" Christian asked in a would-be casual voice, though Ana could detect his nervousness. He reached over and gently took Lucia out of Ana's arms so he held her in his own.

"I'm sure you're aware," Colleen said, her professionalism shining through. "This morning, it was announced that you will be involved in a court-ordered parental action suit regarding Lucia's custody. Until the matter can be resolved by the court, Lucia is going to have to be taken out of your care and put in a children's home for the foreseeable future."

Ana felt numb; she moved over to place her hand on Christian's forearm, trying both to calm him and help ground herself. She felt Christian practically shaking underneath her hand.

"And when does she need to leave?" Christian asked quietly, his voice strained.

Colleen exchanged a glance with her partner. "We've come to take her right now, Mr. Grey," Merton explained, turning to look back to Christian.

Ana felt her heart practically stop in her throat.

" _What?!"_ Christian snapped, and everyone jumped slightly. "You're taking her _now_? You can't do that! You have to give us a heads up or a notice or something! You can't just waltz into our home and take our foster child away from us like this…!"

"Please, Mr. Grey," Colleen spoke over him, frowning at him. "I realize this is a difficult situation, but you don't have to make this harder than it has to be."

"Are you fucking kidding me?!" Christian yelled. "The foster system is supposed to _help_ children, not tear them away from their homes!"

His angry yelling had gotten louder, and Lucia began to cry. Ana quickly stepped forward and took her from Christian's arms, holding her close to her chest while shushing her soothingly.

"Mr. and Mrs. Grey - I'm sorry, but Lucia is going to have to come with us." Merton stepped forward, and Ana realized he was here to help Colleen in case this got confrontational. "She's allowed to take a suitcase of her clothes and personal effects with her, but Colleen and I are going to have to take her with us, one way or the other. If you try to resist in any way, we're going to have to get the police involved."

Christian looked furious, and just as he was about to scream his head off at Merton, Taylor quickly stepped forward to stop his boss from doing something he might regret.

"Sir," Taylor said firmly, gripping Christian by the shoulder and turning them away so they no longer faced the others. Taylor spoke to him in a low, terse voice that the others couldn't hear, probably regarding the trial with Ramkoff and the repercussions of the police showing up at Escala at this time. After talking for a few moments, Christian seemed to have calmed down slightly, though he still looked angry.

"…I'll be right back," he muttered to the others after a moment, turning on his heel and walking toward the staircase. Colleen and Merton simply watched him leave, not speaking a word, and Ana simply continued to try shushing Lucia, who still hadn't stopped crying.

Finally, after nearly ten minutes, Christian returned to the great room, a small duffel bag in his hand.

"Lucia's things," he murmured, practically throwing it at Merton's feet. Merton exchanged a glance with Colleen before picking it up. "Her plushy elephant is in there - she doesn't like to be without it."

Colleen nodded. "Okay."

Christian turned to Ana and Lucia, and he immediately wrapped both of them up in his arms, hugging them tightly. Ana wrapped her free arm around Christian's waist, tears beginning to fill her eyes as the gravity of this moment settled upon her.

 _We may never get to see Lucia ever again._

"We love you, Lamb," Christian murmured after a moment. "Ana and I love you very much - always remember that."

And with that, Lucia was handed over to Colleen and Merton, and the three of them headed back over to the elevator with the small duffel bag of Lucia's things. Lucia, who had stopped crying for only a few minutes, began to bawl again when she realized these two strangers were taking her away from Ana and Christian. Her cries were audible even after the elevator doors closed after them, and Ana felt her heart break in two.

 _Our poor little girl_

Ana turned to Christian beside her, and immediately pulled him into her arms. He clutched onto her like a vice, and after a moment his shoulders began to shake as he sobbed into her shoulder. Ana hugged him tighter, the tears flowing from her own eyes as she did so.

"Our daughter…" Christian cried, and Ana felt her heart clench with sadness. "They took our daughter away…"

Yes _,_ Ana thought to herself as she squeezed her eyes shut in distress. Yes, they did.

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry to leave you all on a sad note :( I promise I won't make you suffer for too long though.**

 **Please review and let me know what you think! Also, make sure you follow my Pinterest board for this story at www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	16. A Family Broken

**A/N: Thank you all for your reviews and support! Here's the next chapter for you.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 16: A Family Broken**

The dark mood that had settled over Escala over the next few days couldn't seem to go away, no matter what Ana and Christian did to try to distract themselves from it. The place just felt so empty without Lucia around anymore - the sound of her laughter as she goofed around with her toys, the pounding of her little feet as she ran from room to room, and even the discordant notes that sounded throughout the penthouse when she played on the piano. All those sounds were missing from Escala, and Ana and Christian couldn't help but feel their lives were emptier because of it.

Even though most hours of the day they spent trying to prepare for their trial against Ramkoff, when Ana and Christian weren't working on the case, they were doing other forms of work. Understandably, Christian had decided to throw himself into the world of mergers & acquisitions in an effort to distract himself from the gaping emptiness he felt, and Ana ended up following suit by having manuscripts sent over from Grey Publishing for her review. Ana had actually ended up moving her office temporarily into Christian's study so she could have a little company while they worked the days away, and Christian seemed at least moderately happier because of it.

Christian and Ana had managed to find out through Colleen that Lucia was currently living at the same Catholic children's home she had stayed at briefly after she was discharged from the hospital. Aside from that, however, there was very little information they could obtain regarding her care - they had no idea if she was happy or being cared for. Legally, Christian and Ana weren't allowed to be in any sort of contact with her - even though Christian could probably bribe someone from social services to make an exception for him and Ana, he didn't want to test the system when it was a legal issue that had ended up putting them in this situation in the first place.

Therefore, Christian and Ana had to remain in purgatory of not knowing how Lucia was for the foreseeable future.

Possibly the only positive thing that had come out of Lucia being taken away to a children's home was the fact that Ana and Christian had become much closer because of it. The afternoon that Lucia had left with Colleen and Merton was easily the most exposed and vulnerable Christian and Ana had ever felt with one another - they had spent pretty much that entire evening just holding each other and crying, seeking the love and comfort they could only find with one another after the heartbreak they had just experienced. They had made love that night, and every night since then - it wasn't necessarily for the physical release, but for the closeness they craved to feel with each other. It was their catharsis, and it helped them forget, if only briefly, the pain they were currently experiencing with the loss of their child.

Carrick started coming over pretty much everyday now to help them work on their case against Ramkoff. He was furious when he heard about what had happened with Lucia being taken away, but from a legal standpoint he knew there was little they could do to change it. Just like his son and daughter-in-law, he decided to double down on working on the trial coming up and ensuring Ramkoff would never get custody of Lucia.

As hopeless as this entire case seemed to Christian and Ana, Carrick seemed a bit more confident - he had assured them several times that they had a rather good chance of getting custody of Lucia. He had already filed to change their status from foster parents to prospective adoptive parents, which legally gave them more of a right to fight Ramkoff in court for Lucia's custody. It also helped that Christian and Ana were a young, financially-stable married couple who had already had Lucia under their care for more than three months, and also that Ramkoff was less financially stable with a known police record.

"There still isn't any concrete proof Ramkoff is her biological father anyway," Carrick constantly pointed out. "Until that's proven, we may not even have to go to trial."

There was meant to be a deposition with a judge a few days before they were supposed to go to court - Carrick said that this was a very good thing, because if it was discovered that Ramkoff wasn't actually Lucia's father at the deposition, then there would be no court proceedings regarding her custody, and Christian and Ana could take her home. Christian and Ana tried to feel optimistic about the deposition, but with everything that had happened to them so far, it was difficult to feel hopeful about anything at all.

All they wanted was Lucia, and if that meant going through the court system that had screwed them over in the first place, then so be it.

In addition to all of this going on, Christian had been having his guy Welch run background checks on both Elena and Belinda Meekaslav, Lucia's deceased biological mother. The latter in particular was fairly difficult to find information on, since she apparently had no family or job while she was alive. However, Welch was able to glean some information on her based on the origin of her last name - apparently, Belinda Meekaslav was originally from St. Petersburg, Russia, and had no family back in her home country. She ended up prostituting herself throughout most of her teenage years, and when she turned 18, she sold herself to an American man as a mail order bride. Whether the man who had bought her was Ramkoff or not, it was impossible to tell since this was all done off the books, but apparently Belinda continued prostituting herself on the streets of Seattle even after she was technically married in America.

Her cause of death was unknown, though many reports from various homeless shelters indicated Belinda suffered from several mental disorders, which probably aided in her death.

Christian felt sick to his stomach when he read Welch's report in its entirety - not only was it heartbreaking to hear about the struggles this woman obviously had to deal with her whole life, but her poor daughter had been left all alone because of her tragic life. It all felt too horrible to comprehend.

Elena was much easier to get information on, thankfully. She was still alive and going to bars every evening - within a day, Welch had managed to find security footage of her initial meeting with Ramkoff at a hotel bar and him buying her several drinks. Based on the security footage of the two of them, they seemed to be pretty cozy, and neither of them had moved from the bar until last call, which was hours later.

"So he _did_ go and talk to her," Ana said once Christian had showed her the security footage. The anger on her face was extremely evident. "That horrible, evil bitch-troll…!"

"Welch is trying to obtain the audio of what they were saying, but it really does look suspicious that they're having a conversation here," Christian said, crossing his arms and staring down at the footage with a frown on his face. "Hopefully, though, this'll be enough evidence to nail Elena to the wall for her breach of NDA."

"When is that going to be, though?" Ana asked, glancing back up at Christian. "I mean, with the whole custody battle coming up…"

She clearly didn't want to elaborate any further, and Christian understood. "We would deal with Elena after all that shit is over and done with," he explained. "We'll be able to sue her for being in violation of her NDA, and if more evidence turns up of Ramkoff taking our CCTV footage, we can charge him with theft and home invasion."

Ana frowned, looking distressed. "Ramkoff's going to be even more pissed at us than he already is if we do that."

"So what?" Christian asked forcefully, and Ana looked up at him. "Ramkoff has already demonstrated he's willing to play dirty. Now, he's about to learn that messing with the Grey's will be the biggest mistake of his life. I'm not about to back down from this."

"But what if…" Ana began, and then stopped, not knowing how to continue. Questions about all this had been eating away at her for weeks now - what if Ramkoff gets custody of Lucia? What if the judge orders her and Christian from never contacting Lucia again? What if they lose this entire case?

Christian seemed to understand Ana's concern, and he walked up to her before protectively wrapping his arms about her waist. "Hey," he said quietly, and her worried eyes met his. "He's not going to win."

Ana gave him a skeptical look. "We don't know that, Christian. I mean, if he's her biological father…"

" _If_ ," Christian repeated firmly. "Ramkoff still doesn't have any definitive evidence that he is actually her father. Belinda Meekaslav worked as a prostitute, so the likelihood is pretty high that Lucia's biological father is some random guy we've never met before. We can win this, I'm sure we can."

His earnest voice didn't seem to convince Ana much, because after a moment she let out a small sigh before giving him a grimace that seemed a bit tentative and strained. "I guess so… although we won't know for sure until the trial."

Christian didn't know what to say to that, and Ana simply leaned up and pecked Christian on the cheek before turning and walking out of his study, not looking back.

Christian watched her leave. He wanted to be her rock, her confidence during these hard times… but this whole fucked-up situation seemed to have made her lose all faith in this turning out in their favor.

He wished she could feel confident they were going to get Lucia back… and deep down inside, he wished he could be too.

* * *

The day of the deposition had finally arrived. Christian almost couldn't believe it - he, Ana and his father had spent the past few weeks going over everything in such fine detail that it felt so strange that the day was finally upon them where all their preparation would be put to the test.

It was now or never.

Christian had dressed up this morning in his usual gray Armani suit, though he had taken extra care to comb his hair back so it looked a bit more tamed than its usual 'just-fucked' appearance. Ana had opted for a burgundy knee-length dress with three-quarter sleeves and a collar, making her seem like a sexy sophisticated business-woman. She put on her closed-toe nude pumps and pulled her chestnut hair back into a conservative ponytail, making Christian unable to resist staring at her as she stepped out of their walk-in closet in her gorgeous ensemble.

"You look beautiful today, baby," Christian said sincerely, and Ana offered him a smile in gratitude.

"Thank you," she said quietly, walking over to him and reaching up toward his lapels, tugging at them gently. "And you look very handsome."

"How are you feeling?" Christian asked, wrapping his arms around her waist as he gazed at her in concern.

"Like crap," Ana said without hesitation. The expression on her beautiful face was utterly miserable. "I miss Lucia."

Christian's heart broke for his wife, and he immediately pulled her closer to him and held her tightly, pressing his lips to the side of her brunette head. Ana hugged him back, burying her face in his chest, and neither of them spoke for several seconds.

"If this trial goes our way, we'll never have to miss her again," Christian said quietly, rubbing his hand along her back. Ana didn't respond other than to let out a small sigh and pulling away from him after a few seconds.

"Yeah," she muttered, brushing some nonexistent lint off the sleeve of her dress. "We should probably get going soon. We're going to be late."

With that, she turned toward the door and walked out of the bedroom, her heels clicking on the hardwood floors. Christian let out a sigh before following her, his heart full of an emotion he wasn't too familiar with.

 _It's time to get our daughter back_.

* * *

The ride to the courthouse took much longer than usual since it was rush hour - for everyone else in Seattle, it was just a regular work day. For Christian and Ana, however, this day would likely affect the rest of their lives, for better or for worse.

 _Were they really ready for this?_

Taylor managed to park on the street outside the King County Courthouse, and Christian and Ana both stepped out. Christian held Ana's hand as they walked up the stone steps toward the large front doors, and she gripped his hand tightly back.

"Hey you two," Carrick was waiting for them in the foyer of the courthouse the moment they entered. He looked as dapper as Christian in a navy blue suit and black tie, dressed as the savvy lawyer he was. "How are you guys doing today?"

"We've been better," Christian spoke for the both of them, and Ana moved her other hand to Christian's forearm, squeezing it gently.

"That's understandable," Carrick said sympathetically. "We've got a good case here though, and I'm sure the judge will see it our way."

"Is the judge waiting for us right now?" Ana asked, her sweet voice sounding tinged with nervousness.

"She should be here shortly, so we ought to head on up," Carrick explained, checking his watch. "Yeah, we should probably go… Family Court will be up on the fifth floor. Come on."

Christian and Ana followed Carrick toward the elevators on the other side of the spacious foyer, none of them saying a word. Christian continued to hold Ana's hand as they stepped onto an elevator, which slowly shut the doors before raising them up toward the fifth floor. Ana continued to grip onto his hand, as if afraid he was going to let go.

The doors opened once again, and before them appeared a slightly smaller foyer breaking off into several wide corridors. The whole area was filled with people - lawyers bustling with briefcases or BlackBerrys in their hands, and parents with young children waiting on benches outside their respective courtrooms. Carrick led them out into the foyer.

"We're going to be in conference room D, down that way," he pointed down a narrower hallway to their right. "I don't know how experienced you two are in court proceedings, but depositions are done in a less formal setting. It's basically just a meeting where we all discuss the evidence being presented - and like I told you before, if the judge doesn't think the evidence is sufficient, this case might not even make it to court."

"Okay," Ana nodded, sounding a bit relieved by that explanation. She turned to look up at Christian to see what he thought, but he was staring at something ahead of him in the distance, his expression hard.

"Christian?" Ana asked, frowning up at him. She followed his gaze to where he was looking, and her face paled.

About twenty yards ahead of them stood two nun who seemed to be in their late fifties. They weren't who had caught Christian's eyes, however - clutching the hand of one of the nuns was Lucia herself, looking rather subdued in an oversized pink t-shirt dress and her long hair pulled back in a low ponytail.

Ana's heart seemed to stop in her chest as both happiness and sadness competed for dominance her chest, making her unable to breathe. She wanted to run over to Lucia and hold her tightly, never to let go again. Christian obviously had the same thoughts as her, since both of them took a simultaneous step toward their little girl, eager to be close to her again.

"Guys, no," Carrick said firmly from behind them, and he grabbed both of their arms so they couldn't move. "You can't have any contact whatsoever with Lucia until the judge gives her verdict."

"But she's here," Christian said, his voice breaking slightly with emotion. "Why did they bring her here if they knew we would be here too?"

"Ramkoff was supposed to take a paternity test the other day, and Lucia's probably just here to provide a sample of her own DNA for comparison," Carrick explained.

"Will she stay for the deposition though?" Ana asked, aware of how desperate her voice sounded as she said it.

"She can't come into the meeting room with us," Carrick said, looking apologetic. "Her caretakers might let her stick around the courthouse for a bit, though - it's up to them."

Ana and Christian could do nothing but stare at Lucia from across the foyer. They silently willed her to turn and look their way - quietly praying that she'd run up to them and jump into their waiting arms, giggling happily like she always did - but she didn't. The woman that was holding her hand eventually began to walk down the hallway in the opposite direction of Ana and Christian, and pretty soon the two of them were out of sight.

Ana felt disappointment and sadness fill her chest, though a small part of her couldn't help but rejoice at getting to see Lucia again after all these weeks of her absence.

"Come on, you two," Carrick said quietly to them once Lucia was gone. "Let's go get your daughter back."

Feeling a strong determination in her heart, Ana took Christian's hand in her own once again, and the two of them followed Carrick toward the conference room that awaited them.

* * *

 **A/N: I realize the last chapter I wrote for this story ended on a rather dark note, and a lot of you readers left me reviews and PMs telling me your own personal dealings with negligent parents or the unfair nature of the foster system. While I'm very thankful I grew up with two very loving parents, I realize not everyone is that fortunate - I do try to make all my stories as realistic and relatable as possible, and it was very touching to hear all of your personal accounts dealing with the child welfare system. Just know that my heart goes out to all of you who have dealt with anything relating to this subject matter :(**

 **Anyway, next chapter is the deposition! If you enjoyed this chapter, feel free to leave a review! And don't forget to follow my Pinterest board for this story at www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	17. The Deposition

**A/N: Thank you for all your reviews and support! Here's the next chapter for you :)**

 **I just want to point out that the legal proceedings in this chapter are all fictional. I am not a lawyer and I'm not super familiar with court proceedings or legal jargon. I've only done a little research on the matter, so if some of my facts seem a little inaccurate to those of you who** _ **are**_ **more familiar with legal proceedings, I apologize. I'm doing my best here!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 17: The Deposition**

Ana, Christian and Carrick all entered the conference room, and the moment they stepped inside, they noticed Ramkoff already seated on the opposite side of the table with a shrewd-looking woman who was clearly his attorney. While Ramkoff observed Christian and Ana with cool impassivity, the couple glared right back at him with unbridled loathing.

 _I hope we destroy this fucker_ , Christian couldn't help but think angrily, balling his fists.

The attorney woman stood up when they entered, smiling politely at Carrick. "Carrick - it's so nice seeing you again."

"You too, Lenna," Carrick smiled politely, reaching across the table and shaking her hand. The two of them took their seats before beginning to make small talk, and Christian and Ana sat down to the right of Carrick, anxiously waiting for the judge to arrive while steadfastly ignoring Ramkoff's gaze as he sat directly across from them.

After a minute or so, the conference room doors opened again and three people walked inside - a middle-aged woman with black frame glasses and her hair up in a tight bun, a well-dressed young man carrying a small typewriter and a stand, and a burly-looking man with a mustache and wearing a tan sheriff's uniform.

Carrick and the attorney named Lenna both got to their feet when the three of them walked in, and Christian, Ana and Ramkoff quickly did the same. The woman and the young man with the typewriter both walked to the front of the table and sat down in the two empty chairs there as the mustached man stood sentinel beside the door, his hands clasped in front of him in a stern pose. The others quickly sat down, and Ana and Christian noticed the woman with glasses giving them a sideways glance before donning a professional-looking smile on her face.

"Good morning, everyone," she said, glancing around the room at large. "My name is Lydia Connelly, and I'll be the presiding judge over this deposition. This here is my associate, Mr. Kurt Walden…" she gestured to the young man, who was currently typing away at the small typewriter he had set up in front of him. "He'll be the stenographer overseeing our session today, and over there is Mr. Tad Lenowitz, our presiding bailiff."

The next few minutes proceeded with other formal introductions made by Judge Connelly, Carrick, and Lenna - these were obviously just meant for the stenographer to keep on record, but it was making Ana feel more on-edge than she would've liked. As if he could sense her disquiet, Christian reached for Ana's hand under the table and gave her fingers a gentle squeeze, calming her.

The bailiff then came forward holding a Bible in his hands, and Ana, Christian, and Ramkoff were all asked to stand and give their sworn testimony. Ana had never done anything like this before, and she felt a bit odd placing her right hand on the Bible and repeating the words Mr. Lenowitz told her to say, but she did it without complaint. A few minutes later, they were all done swearing in, and the deposition could finally proceed.

"So, today's hearing is going to be concerning the custody of a Ms. Lucia Meekaslav," Judge Connelly continued, glancing down at some files in front of her. "Mr. and Mrs. Grey are her foster parents who have had her under their care for the last three months and are now prospective adoptive parents. Is that correct?"

"Yes," Christian and Ana said together, nodding in confirmation. Carrick and Lenna both jotted something down on their respective notepads.

"…However, Mr. Adalay Ramkoff here has come forward, claiming he is Lucia's biological father and therefore states he ought to have sole custody of her?" Judge Connelly shifted her gaze over at Ramkoff, giving him a scrutinizing look over the tops of her glasses.

"Correct," Lenna agreed, setting her pen down and folding her hands professionally in front of her. Ramkoff said nothing, though he shot one more covert glance over at Christian and Ana.

"So I assume this is simply a matter of who wants her more?" Judge Connelly turned back to Christian and Ana, raising an eyebrow at them.

Carrick spoke up: "While my clients do have a conflict of interest in regards to Lucia's care, they also have real reason to suspect Mr. Ramkoff's motives for gaining custody of Lucia isn't in her best interest," he stated.

"Well, _my_ client believes Lucia being in the custody of Mr. and Mrs. Grey wouldn't be in her best interest either," Lenna interrupted firmly, giving Carrick a shrewd glare.

Ana and Christian glanced at each other incredulously before turning their livid glares over to Ramkoff. _Was he fucking serious?_

"Well, just from what I can see here, I don't know where Mr. Ramkoff's concerns are coming from," Judge Connelly glanced down at her papers again, frowning. "Mr. and Mrs. Grey are a financially-stable married couple who have already had Lucia Meekaslav under their care for several months now with no complaints or reports of abuse from social services during that time." She looked back up at Ramkoff. "What is it about them that seems so terrible to you?"

Christian felt his stomach clench with a sickening feeling when he saw the smirk form on Ramkoff's face. "I've recently come across some disturbing information regarding Mr. Grey's lifestyle, and I don't believe Lucia, or any child for that matter, would be safe in that sort of environment," he said smoothly.

Christian exhaled through his nose, his jaw clenched in anger. He had had a horrible feeling Ramkoff was going to go there, but he didn't think it would be so soon in the deposition. Christian still had a strong urge to reach across the table and punch Ramkoff in the face.

"And what about Mr. Grey's lifestyle is so disturbing, Mr. Ramkoff?" Judge Connelly asked, sounding almost skeptical of his answer.

Carrick, who seemed he had prepared for this topic of discussion, quickly spoke up: "Your Honor, I believe I know what Mr. Ramkoff is referring to, and if you'll allow us to explain…"

"Excuse me, I believe _my_ client was being questioned by Judge Connelly," Lenna interrupted Carrick firmly.

"Enough," Connelly said when Carrick looked like he wanted to snap right back. She then turned to Ramkoff, nodding at him. "Mr. Ramkoff?"

"Grey is a sick man," Ramkoff stated, staring boldly over at a glowering Christian. "He participates in a sadistic sexual lifestyle where he beats up women, and I don't want my daughter anywhere near him."

Christian's jaw twitched, and it was only the comforting touch of his wife's hand in his that managed to keep him from reaching across the table and strangling Ramkoff.

"And this so-called 'lifestyle' Mr. Grey participates in… you can corroborate this?" Judge Connelly turned to look questioningly back over at Carrick.

"Before I say anything, may I once again be assured that the information revealed in this deposition does not go outside this room?" Carrick asked professionally, probably more for his son's benefit than anything.

"You may," Judge Connelly nodded to her stenographer to ensure he recorded that. "Go on."

"My son admits to having participated in the alternative sexual lifestyle BDSM for most of his adult years," Carrick explained, revealing what he and Christian had agreed upon beforehand. "However, when he met his wife Anastasia, he decided to give up that lifestyle, and it has not been a part of his life since then."

Carrick immediately began presenting the evidence to the judge - documents, printed records, and even some photographs of Christian going to BDSM clubs going all the way back from when he was 21. It was all the evidence Christian had offered up to his father when he told him about his lifestyle (obviously not mentioning his time with Elena), and he and Carrick had agreed that in this particular case, the best defense was a good offense.

Carrick then began explaining the basics of BDSM to the room at large, how it was a perfectly acceptable sexual lifestyle since it was conducted in a safe and controlled environment with limits in place. Ana listened to her father-in-law speak about BDSM like it was a completely normal thing to do, and she couldn't help but feel infinitely uncomfortable - she could only imagine how uncomfortable Christian was feeling right about now too. Luckily, however, it seemed as if Judge Connelly was becoming convinced of the Grey's testimony, and she nodded along as Carrick spoke.

Once he was finished, Connelly glanced over at Ramkoff, gesturing to the documented evidence. "And what do you have to say to this, Mr. Ramkoff?"

The doubt in her voice was apparent, and Ramkoff clearly knew he had to say something in order to convince her he was right. "Grey has a BDSM dungeon in his house," he stated, a look of triumph in his eyes. Ana felt her heart stop in her throat, and Ramkoff's attorney immediately tried to hush Ramkoff from saying anything more.

"I'm sorry, what is he talking about?" Judge Connelly glanced between Ramkoff and Carrick.

"Your Honor, please let it be noted that the only way Mr. Ramkoff could have gotten that information is through illegal means," Carrick snapped, his angry eyes on Ramkoff. "My client did, in fact, have a room where he practiced his alternative lifestyle, but he had had it removed _before_ Lucia Meekaslav came under his care - the DCFS home inspection on record from three months ago can confirm that. However, the fact that Mr. Ramkoff is aware of that room at all should be a cause for suspicion, since the only people who could have known about it had signed non-disclosure agreements. Ramkoff could not have obtained his intel legally."

"This isn't about my client. This is about _your_ client creating an unsafe environment for his daughter!" Lenna shot back at Carrick.

"Enough!" Judge Connelly interrupted loudly, glaring between both attorneys, who both went silent. "We're getting off topic here." Connelly turned to look at Ramkoff. "Mr. Ramkoff, I don't know what purpose you think it serves to bring up Mr. Grey's past sexual lifestyle right now, but if your only goal here is to try to discredit Mr. Grey and make him appear like an unfit parent, then I'll tell you right now it's not going to work. Legally, a person's sexual preference has no bearing whatsoever on whether or not he or she can be an adoptive parent, unless clear and substantial evidence can be found the prospective parent has had a history of pedophilia. Since I have yet to see any evidence of _that_ happening within Mr. Grey's life, I'll reiterate…" She turned to the stenographer: "Mr. Ramkoff's argument of Mr. Grey's sexual lifestyle being a danger to Lucia will have no bearing in this deposition, nor will it in court if this case happens to go that far."

Ramkoff looked as if Connelly had just slapped him - his lawyer Lenna started whispering something fervently in his ear, and Christian and Ana couldn't help but look at each other with relieved expressions on their faces. It felt like such a huge weight was lifted off of Christian's chest - Ramkoff couldn't use his information from Elena to try to destroy them.

"Let's get back on track here - namely, with Lucia Meekaslav's guardianship," Judge Connelly went on, straightening her glasses and gazing down at yet another sheet of paper in front of her. "It says here that Belinda Meekaslav, Lucia's mother, was married before she died?"

"That's correct," Lenna said immediately. "For approximately 6 months, she was married to Albert Penn, but he died of a stroke shortly after their wedding."

"And there's no chance _he_ could have been Lucia's father?" Judge Connelly asked.

"No, your Honor - Mr. Penn died over 6 years ago," Lenna explained, passing a document over to her. "He was 58 years old when he married Belinda Meekaslav, and he was already in poor health. As far as we're aware, he had no progeny."

"Belinda was only 19 when Mr. Penn died, correct?" Judge Connelly asked, and Lenna nodded in confirmation. "She was all alone in the world and had to make ends meet - what did she do for work?"

Both Ramkoff and Lenna remained silent, and Carrick finally spoke up. "We have evidence to suggest that she was a prostitute," he said, staring boldly over at Ramkoff.

"A prostitute," Connelly repeated, turning to look at Ramkoff. "Is that correct?"

Ramkoff only stared at Carrick, the glower on his face evident. "She didn't want to be," he grit out after a moment. "But she had no choice."

"So, in summation, Belinda Meekaslav was married to a man for 6 months, and when he died, she prostituted herself for a living," Judge Connelly stated, looking back over at Ramkoff. "And yet _you're_ convinced you are the biological father of her child?"

"I am," Ramkoff said confidently, straightening up in his seat. "She got pregnant around the same time we started seeing each other, so I know Lucia is mine. And I know Bella wanted me to take care of Lucia if anything ever happened to her."

Judge Connelly looked unimpressed. "Well, considering what Belinda did for a living, and the fact that she never left a will stating who Lucia's guardian ought to be, that remains to be seen." She straightened her glasses and glanced down at the file in front of her. "It says here you took a paternity test?"

Ramkoff exchanged a glance with his attorney. "I did."

Christian and Ana glanced at each other as well, their hearts pounding loudly in their throats. What those test results revealed would inevitably determine their and Lucia's fates.

"I assume you have the results," Judge Connelly went on, clearly impatient. "Are you Lucia's biological father or not?"

Lenna cleared her throat, shuffling some papers in front of her. "The test was inconclusive."

Ana and Christian both blinked, staring at Lenna in shock. _Inconclusive?_

"What?" Carrick asked, frowning in confusion and surprise.

Lenna passed the results of the test to Judge Connelly, who glanced over them before passing them over to Carrick. Ana chanced a glance over toward Ramkoff, whose face remained expressionless, though she could detect the tiniest hint of relief in his eyes.

"It says here they tested you twice," Carrick stated, looking up at Ramkoff as well with an accusing frown on his face. "And both tests were inconclusive?"

"That's actually not so surprising," Judge Connelly said to Carrick. "Genetic marker testing requires the DNA from the mother, father, and child in order to have the most accurate results. Since the mother obviously can't give her DNA for this test, the results were more likely to be inconclusive."

"So then what do we do now?" Christian blurted out, probably more forcefully than he intended.

Judge Connelly let out a sigh, looking down at her papers while once again straightening the glasses perched on her nose. "It doesn't happen very often, but in such cases as this, where there is no clear biological parent of the child in question, it would be up to me to determine what would be in the best interest of the child."

The room was silent after she said that - Christian and Ana looked at each other, their shocked faces appearing paler than normal. They had no idea what the judge was about to say, and a part of them almost didn't want to hear it.

Connelly stared down at her papers for a second before finally looking up at them all. "…I must say, I don't often deal with cases like this," she said after a moment, folding her hands on the table in front of her. "More often than not, I work with parental action suits where the biological father steadfastly refuses to take responsibility for his child. It's actually quite refreshing to see a father fighting so passionately for custody of his own progeny."

Connelly offered Ramkoff a small smile, and Ana felt her heart sinking into her stomach, a nauseous feeling overtaking her body and making her want to throw up. She suddenly wished she could leave the room so she didn't have to hear what Connelly was going to say next.

"…Especially after two inconclusive paternity tests," she went on, still gazing at Ramkoff. "You are still absolutely convinced you are Lucia's biological father. Is that right?"

Something in her tone didn't sound very complimentary, however, and Ana picked up on it. Christian, who had looked about as sick as Ana felt, was now gazing at Connelly with a small confused frown on his face.

Ramkoff blinked, glancing between Connelly and his attorney. "Well… you said that an inconclusive test was normal when the mother couldn't provide her DNA. I could still be Lucia's father, right?"

"You could, but you've had these test results for 24 hours now," Connelly said, gesturing to the piece of paper in front of her. "Did you know that the test results were likely to be inconclusive before I explained it just now?"

"No."

Judge Connelly gave him a shrewd look. "And yet you're still convinced you're Lucia's biological father?"

"Yes, I am," Ramkoff stated confidently.

Carrick made a small noise, and Ana glanced over at him to see he was fighting a smile. Apparently, Ramkoff had just said the wrong thing, and a small glimmer of hope bloomed in Ana's chest.

"Well, that's very admirable Mr. Ramkoff, since most fathers in your position wouldn't have the confidence you seem to have." Connelly gave him a sardonic smile before turning to look back at the test results in front of her. "While we're on the topic of your paternity, Mr. Ramkoff, can you tell me why you waited until 24 hours ago to take this test?"

"It's perfectly within my client's right to not take his paternity test until 24 hours before his deposition…" Lenna began fervently.

"That's true," Connelly nodded at Lenna. "He is allowed to wait until 24 hours before his deposition to take a paternity test, but I'm just wondering why he chose to wait until the very last minute to take the test when he was advised to do it weeks ago?"

Ramkoff definitely looked a bit more nervous now. He exchanged another glance with his attorney. "I didn't think it mattered," he said, trying to brush it off.

"Normally it doesn't, but I'm just curious… if you're so confident that you're Lucia's biological father, why did you wait as long as you did to take the paternity test? I would think a man in your position would take the test as soon as possible in order to prove early on that you are, in fact, her father."

Ramkoff was clearly uncomfortable, and he began to get a bit defensive: "I don't really see the problem here - I just didn't think it mattered, that's all. Since the paternity test was inconclusive, I could very well still be Lucia's father. I truly believe her mother would have wanted me to have custody of her!"

"And do you know what _I_ believe, Mr. Ramkoff?" Connelly asked smoothly, looking Ramkoff in the eye. He went silent, staring at her with an almost fearful expression on his face. "I believe you have no idea whether or not you are Lucia's father. The obvious over-confidence you display of your paternity despite the inconclusive tests was a clear sign to me. Also, the fact you waited until 24 hours ago to take your paternity test - when most DNA tests need at least 48 hours to process - tells me you were pretty much relying on the fact that the test was going to turn out inconclusive so you could take this to court and try to fight it. Or maybe your goal was just to try to drag this out as much as possible in order to expose Mr. Grey's sadistic sexual lifestyle to the world? Considering the fact that that information was the very first statement you revealed in this deposition and had virtually nothing to do with Lucia, I'd say that explanation was also very likely. Either way, I'm not impressed."

Connelly took off her glasses, and Ana felt a fleeting sensation of familiarity, as if she knew Connelly from somewhere, although she couldn't quite place where. Ana didn't dwell on it much, however, since Connelly began to speak to the room:

"I'm sure it's probably clear to everybody what I'm going to say, but I'll state right now that I'm not going to allow this case to go to court," she said firmly. "I hereby issue that Mr. Adalay Ramkoff is _not_ Lucia Meekaslav's biological father, and he is not to have custody of her at any point in her life. I also state that Mr. Adalay Ramkoff will be issued with a restraining order against Mr. and Mrs. Grey as well as Lucia Meekaslav, meaning that he is not to be in any sort of contact with any of them or issue any public statements regarding them, or he will be held in contempt. Lucia Meekaslav will remain in foster care for the foreseeable future, until the Grey's or some other adoptive family choose to take her home. Case dismissed."

Ramkoff began to say something heatedly, jumping to his feet as he confronted the judge, and Lenna immediately stood up to try to calm him down. However, Ana didn't hear anything beyond her own overpowering sense of relief - she felt Christian's arms pull her to him, and she immediately embraced him back, tears of happiness stinging her eyes. Only one joyful thought managed to permeate her brain:

 _We won_.

* * *

 **A/N: Hope that was worth the wait! If you enjoyed this chapter, please leave a review! :)**

 **I'm going to have one more chapter after this to wrap everything up, then an epilogue after that. Thank you all so much for reading!**

 **To follow my Pinterest board for this story, the link is www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours/**


	18. The Happy Ending

**A/N: Thank you all so much for your continued love and support! It truly means a lot :) Here's the next chapter for you.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 18: The Happy Ending**

Ramkoff clearly wasn't about to leave quietly, but fortunately the bailiff Mr. Lenowitz was much bigger than Ramkoff, and managed to get him out of the room with his hands restrained behind his back. Ana and Christian continued to hug each other tightly as Ramkoff was led out, the attorney Lenna trailing along behind them, and Christian's hand went up to hold the back of Ana's head, as if he was trying to protect her from the scene happening before them by keeping her face against his shoulder. Only when Ramkoff was gone did he finally let go.

Ana immediately lifted her face off of Christian's jacket and turned toward the judge. "Can we go see Lucia now?" she asked quickly, clearly eager to get their child back as soon as possible.

"We have to get everything squared away with social services first, but yes," Judge Connelly said, giving her a kind smile. "You and Mr. Grey can have Lucia back in your custody by the end of the day today at the soonest."

Ana and Christian both beamed at the judge before turning back toward each other, smiling happily. The emotion and overwhelming happiness showed clearly in their eyes, and Christian leaned forward to press his forehead to Ana's, gazing lovingly into her eyes.

"I love you, baby," Christian whispered, and Ana felt a tear or two slip down her cheeks. "Let's go get our daughter back."

Carrick and Judge Connelly spoke with each other for a minute or so about what forms they needed to fill out at the social services facility a few blocks away before he, Christian and Ana gathered up their things and left the room.

"I have to say, that went much better than I had ever expected," Carrick said, not bothering to hide the large smile from spreading across his face as they walked across the foyer toward the elevators. Ramkoff was nowhere in sight. "I mean, I always knew we had a solid case against Ramkoff, but Judge Connelly seemed to smell something fishy about him from the get-go. She absolutely destroyed him towards the end!"

"She really did," Christian grinned approvingly as they stopped in front of the elevators, pressing the button to go down to the main level. "We didn't even have to point out the horrible conditions in which Lucia was found to try to prove our case - it's like the judge instinctively knew Ramkoff was the bad guy in this whole situation."

The elevator doors slid open, and the three of them stepped inside. After a few seconds, the doors opened again on the main floor of city hall, and the spacious foyer was filled with people as it had been only a few hours ago. Carrick, Ana and Christian stepped out of the elevator, and they were halfway toward the front doors when they suddenly heard a young child start to cry.

 _Lucia_

Ana and Christian instinctively whipped their heads toward the sound, and their hearts stopped when they saw that Lucia was still here with the sisters from the children's home. One of the nuns was holding Lucia by her hand, but Lucia had spotted Christian and Ana, and was tugging fruitlessly to get free while crying loudly for them.

" _Mama!_ " she cried, reaching out for them as her tiny tear-streaked face contorted in anguish. " _Dada!_ "

It was instinctive - Ana and Christian immediately bolted toward Lucia, and the nun finally let go of her hand so she began running toward them too. Christian was a bit faster than Ana, and in a moment, he was on his knees in front of Lucia and wrapped his arms around her protectively, holding her tightly against his chest.

"Oh Lamb," Christian shushed soothingly as she cried into his suit, and he pressed his lips against her hair as relief and happiness overtook his thoughts. He felt Ana kneel down beside him, and he quickly slipped one arm off of Lucia so he could pull Ana into their embrace; she immediately wrapped her arms around them both tightly, tears streaming down her beautiful face.

"We're so sorry, sweetheart," Ana said tearfully, kissing the top of Lucia's head. "We promise to never leave you ever again… we promise…"

The three of them continued to hold each other on the floor of city hall, crying freely - none of them seemed to care that passer-by were stopping and staring at their little reunion. Christian, Ana and Lucia all continued to hold each other, not letting the Adalay Ramkoffs or the Elena Lincolns of the world get to them anymore. They were all exactly where they were supposed to be.

And for the first time in a long time, everything truly felt like it was going to be okay.

* * *

 **~5 weeks later~**

The first snowfall of winter happened overnight, and this Sunday morning in mid-December dawned sunny and cold in Seattle, with several inches of fresh snow coating everything like a fluffy white blanket. Ana woke up that morning to see the beautiful winter landscape outside her and Christian's floor-to-ceiling bedroom window, and she couldn't help but smile. She felt refreshed this beautiful snowy morning, and she immediately got out of bed and got ready for the day, eager for what she, Christian and Lucia were going to go do later.

So much had seemed to happen over the last few weeks, Ana almost couldn't keep track of it all in her head. After their deposition at city hall and their emotional reunion with Lucia, Ana and Christian were able to take her back home for the first time in weeks. Her bedroom and all of her things were still there (neither Ana nor Christian had had the heart to get rid of any of it when she was gone), and Lucia seemed absolutely delighted to be back. She didn't seem at all upset at Ana and Christian for supposedly leaving her for several weeks, and while she wasn't necessarily mistreated at the children's home, the people there definitely didn't give her the love and affection she had been so accustomed to when staying at Escala. As far as she was concerned, Ana and Christian were her parents, and Lucia would always forgive them no matter what happened to her.

And then there was Ramkoff… Ana and Christian weren't foolish enough to think he was going to honor the restraining order when he was so clearly angry after he had lost the case for Lucia's custody. In the days following their deposition, Christian had amped up security and made sure Ramkoff was being closely watched, just in case he would try to harm Lucia in any way. Strangely enough, however, Ramkoff seemed to honor the judge's order to stay away from them - Christian and Ana still felt a bit nervous about this, since Ramkoff could be rather conniving, and he may have just been biding his time before he got his revenge. However, Christian and Ana were very surprised to learn Ramkoff had actually moved away from Seattle a couple weeks ago. Taylor had gone into his apartment complex one day to find everything in his place was cleared out except for a hand-written letter sitting on his kitchen table addressed to Christian.

The letter stated that he, Ramkoff, had decided there was nothing left for him in Seattle anymore, and that he and a woman he was dating had decided to move out to Nevada together for a fresh start. He also had the audacity to admit that he honestly had no idea whether or not Lucia was actually his biological daughter, but he still insisted her mother Belinda loved him and would have wanted him to be her guardian, despite what the judge had said. He called Christian a lot of rude names that were very scathing, but Ana and Christian hardly cared at this point - they just wanted to know if it was true Ramkoff had actually left the state. When it turned out it was actually true, it was like a huge weight had lifted off Ana and Christian's shoulders. Ramkoff would no longer be a problem for them, and they could breathe easy now.

Elena Lincoln was a bit of a different story, however - as soon as Christian and Ana had gotten custody of Lucia, they immediately sued Elena for breaking the statutes of her NDA when she willingly told Ramkoff about Christian's past BDSM lifestyle and his dismantled playroom. They sued her for all the money she had left (which wasn't much), but Carrick told them they should expect Elena's lawyer to litigate. That wasn't what ended up happening, however - after Elena had found out Christian was suing her, she was absolutely devastated. She knew she couldn't afford a decent lawyer to fight her case, so she tried drinking her problems away - the result was her getting behind the wheel of her car, drunk as shit, and crashing into a tree, resulting in her Lexus being totaled and her right leg and ribcage getting severely broken.

Elena was in the hospital for weeks, and Noel, her sister, came to Seattle as soon as she found out what had happened. While Noel and Elena's relationship had always been strained at best, when she realized her sister was apparently struggling with alcoholism, Noel agreed to take Elena back home to Spokane with her in order to let her heal and get some help for her addiction. Christian promised to drop the suit against Elena if she agreed to leave Seattle forever with her sister and promise never to come back, and Elena reluctantly agreed. She was eventually discharged from the hospital, and, true to her word, left with her sister and was out of Christian, Ana, and Lucia's lives forever. Good fucking riddance.

Ana now finally finished up getting ready for the day, having put on a simple cable-knit sweater and bootcut jeans - she stepped out of her bedroom and went in search of her husband and daughter, whom she knew were somewhere in the apartment. It wasn't unusual for her to wake up for the day to find that Christian and Lucia were both already up, either grabbing an early breakfast or else learning a new song together on the piano. It was all very cute, and Ana absolutely loved seeing Christian's obvious joy at having Lucia back in their lives.

Ana now walked over to Lucia's bedroom, and paused outside the half-open door when she heard voices coming from inside. Peeking in, she could just make out Lucia sitting at her small, child-sized vanity while brushing the mane of her plastic My Little Pony doll. Kneeling behind her was Christian, who was combing her hair into a braid while talking to her:

"One more time, Lamb, and then we have to go find Mommy so we can go over to Grandma and Grandpa's house. Okay?" he said, dividing her dark hair into three sections.

"Okay," Lucia agreed.

"Ready?" he asked. "One… two…"

Christian began to sing, and Lucia sang along with him, her tiny little girl voice contrasting sharply with Christian's baritone one, but it was such an adorable sound Ana couldn't fight the huge smile from spreading across her face. As she listened she could recognize the lyrics to the classic Muppets Movie song "The Rainbow Connection":

 _Why are there so many  
_ _Songs about rainbows,  
_ _And what's on the other side?_

 _Well rainbows are visions  
_ _But only illusions  
_ _And rainbows have nothing to hide._

Christian was singing slowly enough so Lucia could follow along, but it didn't seem to matter since Lucia obviously didn't know the lyrics. She was able to follow the melody pretty well, though, as she continued to studiously brush her pony's purple mane and sing along with her dad, who expertly braided her hair:

 _So we've been told  
_ _And some choose to believe it.  
_ _I know they're wrong  
_ _Wait and see…_

 _Someday we'll find it,  
_ _The Rainbow Connection  
_ _The lovers, the dreamers, and me._

Ana opened the door a little wider, and she listened to their performance while leaning against the doorframe, her arms crossed in front of her as she smiled at the adorable scene before her. Christian finished up Lucia's hair just as their song ended, tying it at the base, and Ana finally decided to make her presence known.

"That was beautiful, guys."

Christian and Lucia both looked up and smiled when they noticed Ana standing there. Lucia jumped to her feet and ran over to her, giggling happily, while Christian got up from his kneeling position, a rather embarrassed smile on his handsome face. Ana couldn't fight her grin as she hugged Lucia good morning and then allowed her to run off and find Gail so she could have her breakfast.

Once Lucia was gone, Ana turned back to her husband, who had ambled toward her and wrapped his arms around her waist. Ana's arms immediately went up to go around his neck, and she smiled up at him, fiddling with his hair at the nape of his neck.

"That was quite the performance," Ana said teasingly, her smile infectious. Christian smiled back before chuckling a little.

"So did you want to head over to my parents' soon?" he asked, changing the subject. Clearly in an attempt to distract her, he leaned forward and kissed her tenderly on the forehead, and Ana decided to drop the matter.

"I was thinking in about an hour we could go," Ana said. "We should eat breakfast first, and then I wanted to call up the moving company we hired so we can finally set a date for our move."

Christian nodded. "That's a good idea - I feel like we should get it done sooner rather than later. I wish we didn't have to move in the dead of winter, but I suppose we don't have much of a choice in the matter."

"The weather forecast is going to be a bit clearer next week, so we could try around then. Does that sound good?"

Christian smiled back. "That sounds perfect, baby," he leaned forward and kissed her sweetly on the lips. After a moment he pulled back, gazing deep into her eyes. "I can't wait to move into our new home with you, Mrs. Grey."

Ana brushed her nose up against his. "Don't forget about Lucia," she reminded him, grinning.

Right on cue, Lucia's happy laughter sounded from the kitchen, and Christian smiled when he heard it. "Of course," he agreed, contentment filling his handsome features.

Ana smiled up at him before bringing her arms down and lacing her fingers with his, tugging him out of the bedroom toward the kitchen where Lucia was. Christian allowed her to pull him along, still smiling from ear to ear.

 _My girls._

Life had never seemed so good.

* * *

About an hour later, Christian, Ana and Lucia had all piled into the backseat of the black Audi SUV, and Taylor drove them through Seattle toward the Grey Estate in Bellevue. Ever since the trial and all the crazy aftermath involving Ramkoff and Elena leaving town, Christian and Ana hadn't really had a chance to visit with Grace and Carrick. There was so much they wanted to catch them up on, and Christian was honestly looking forward to telling them all about it today.

He and Ana had finally been able to begin the adoption process with Lucia, much to their relief. Child Services had initially been hesitant to begin it, since Lucia likely had other biological relatives elsewhere who would automatically get custody of her. Thankfully, however, nobody came forward, and Christian and Ana were finally free to start the adoption proceedings. Hopefully, by this time next year, Lucia would officially be theirs.

Only to add to their happiness, Elliot's construction crew finally finished remodeling their new house on the Sound. Christian and Ana had visited it a few times already, and the last time they went they brought along Lucia. They could tell Lucia was already going to feel right at home here - she got very excited when they showed her her bedroom and the spacious conservatory where the piano was meant to go. The massive yard leading out to the meadow was probably her favorite, however - she skipped around and played amongst the trees and tall grass like she was the happiest child in the world, and Christian and Ana felt like this place was already home sweet home.

Lucia now sat in her car seat in between Ana and Christian, playing quite happily with her stuffed elephant which she had recently started calling 'Bobo' for some reason. She was dressed adorably today in a navy blue cashmere sweater, a white patterned skirt with black tights and Mary Jane shoes. Her white winter coat was set off to the side due to how warm the car was.

Ana sat on the other side of Lucia, gazing out the car window at all the Bellevue houses they passed by. There was something about her demeanor that made Christian a bit concerned, however.

"Are you alright?" he asked after a moment.

Ana didn't say anything - she finally pulled her eyes away from the window and blinked a couple times, as if in a daze. She looked as if she just realized something.

"Ana?" Christian asked, a bit worried.

"…Do you remember when he went trick-or-treating with Lucia around this area?" she asked, not looking up at him. Christian continued to stare at her, confused.

"Um, yeah?"

Ana finally looked up at him. "Do you remember that one woman we spoke to? We went to her door and she assumed Lucia was our daughter, but we told her she was only our foster child."

Christian nodded, remembering what she was talking about, but then stopped, the realization of why she was bringing that up hitting him with a sudden clarity.

That woman… holy shit, how had he not realized it before?

"Oh my God," he muttered, blinking in realization. "That was…?"

"Yeah," Ana whispered, still looking a bit in shock. She shook her head. "I mean, I knew she looked sort of familiar to me at the deposition… but I just couldn't figure out where I had seen her before."

"It must've been the glasses," Christian said, still feeling a bit shocked. "She wasn't wearing any when we first met her. God…" he shook his head, letting out an involuntary chuckle. "What a weird coincidence. Do you think she remembered us at all?"

Ana didn't answer - she gazed down at Lucia, who was still keeping herself entertained with her little plushy elephant. After a few seconds of thoughtful silence, a faint smile crossed Ana's lips.

"You know, I think she did," she said quietly, almost sounding surprised at herself for saying that. Christian knew she was thinking over everything - about what the odds were of having that woman be their judge in that deposition, and about possibly having her, a stranger, be on their side this entire time, rooting for them to keep Lucia under their care. Maybe that one chance encounter on Halloween had changed everything for them.

 _Or maybe guardian angels do exist after all_.

"Then I'm glad she did," Christian said quietly, his voice sincere, and Ana glanced back up at him. She smiled, and he smiled back.

"Me too."

Taylor finally pulled into the driveway of the Grey Estate, meaning it was time to go. Christian and Ana unbuckled their seatbelts, and waited for Taylor to come to a complete stop before unbuckling Lucia.

"You ready, Lamb?" Christian asked, picking her up out of her carseat and sliding out of the SUV. Lucia responded by wrapping her little arms around Christian's neck, hugging him tightly, and Christian smiled, holding her close.

He knew he was ready. He was ready to spend the rest of his life loving this little girl, and he was ready to experience the joys of parenthood with his beautiful wife by his side. He never thought he would ever be ready to do any of these things, but this past year of his life had turned his preconceived notions about love completely upside down, first with meeting the love of his life, and then adopting a child with her. It seemed so strange just thinking about it all, and yet it felt so completely perfect.

Christian had never been more ready to begin the rest of his life with his new family.

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you all so much for reading my story! It is officially finished, but I'm going to be posting an epilogue to it later next week - it won't have much to do with the events in this story, but if you're curious to see Lucia all grown up, feel free to read it :)**

 **P.S. - I know I said Teddy and Phoebe weren't going to be in this story at all. I lied ;)**

 **See you next chapter (hopefully)!**

 **Follow my Pinterest board for this story at www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours**


	19. Epilogue - The Q&A

**A/N: Thank you all for your lovely reviews and support! I hope you enjoy this last chapter :)**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

 **Chapter 19: Epilogue - The Q &A**

 **~15 Years Later~**

Lucy Grey sat in front of her bedroom vanity, staring at her reflection as she lightly ran a makeup brush along her cheeks - normally, her overlarge brown eyes and pale skin caused her to feel a bit insecure, but today she couldn't help but admit she looked a bit better than normal, mostly due to all the makeup she had just put on. There was a little bit of blush on the apples of her cheeks, dark black eyeliner along her lids ending in an attractive cat eye, and her lips a dark ruby red color, contrasting sharply with her complexion. It was a very chic look, but it felt a bit much for Lucy.

Today was filming day, however, and Lucy knew she needed to look her best.

A loud shifting sound and a heavy clunk sounded from behind her, and she set her brush down while glaring at her brother through the vanity's mirror.

"Are you done yet?"

"Almost," Ted Grey rearranged one of the tall professional-looking ring lights standing in the corner of his sister's bedroom, trying to cast as much light toward the center of the room as possible. He tilted his head to the side slightly in order to try to see it at a different angle, making sure everything looked perfect.

"Luce, could you shift your Play Button down like a quarter of an inch? It's casting a glare," he said, pointing toward the back of the room and squinting slightly to block the reflection.

Lucy stood up from her vanity and walked over to the shelf toward the back of her bedroom wall. Perched on top of the shelf and in plain view of everyone was a large framed glass case with a giant solid gold YouTube Play Button glittering beautifully inside of it. At the base of the glass case towards the center of the frame read:

 _CONGRATULATIONS  
_ _For surpassing  
_ _One Million Subscribers_

Below that was the red and white YouTube insignia, and on top of it, in large bolded white letters was the name of her channel and internet persona: _Lucy Lamb_

"Is that better?" Lucy asked Ted after moving the case back a little bit and stepping away to see it more clearly.

"Yeah, way better," Ted said, finally stepping away from the light and moving to the center of the room. He grinned at his sister. "I think we're finally ready to shoot your video now."

Lucy grimaced back slightly before taking a deep breath through her nose and exhaling it all out from her mouth, trying to calm her nerves. While she had honestly been looking forward to making this video for months, she couldn't help but feel a bit anxious now that she was meant to be shooting it. She had never made a video quite like this before, and she very much wanted it to go well.

"This feels so weird," Lucy couldn't help but giggle nervously, walking over to take a seat in the chair Ted had placed in the center of her room. "Usually I'm sitting at a piano and not talking when we're doing these things."

"You're not backing out on me now, Luce," Ted said sternly, moving over to her Mac computer and typing something on it. "It took me all morning to move all your shit from the piano room and set up in here - you owe me this."

"Dad said he would do it," Lucy argued back, reaching over to the bed and grabbing her iPad which she was going to be reading off of.

"Sure he did," Ted snorted derisively.

Lucy didn't respond other than to flip her brother the bird while looking down on her iPad, and Ted laughed, causing Lucy to grin. She knew as well as anyone that Ted loved being an integral part of her YouTube career, and despite the fact he was only fifteen years old, he was one of the smartest and most tech-savvy people she knew. He was definitely an invaluable asset to her work, and she was honestly thankful he was there for her.

"Ready?" Ted asked now, finishing up typing on the computer before moving over to the tripod which was set up directly in front of Lucy.

"One second," Lucy quickly reached behind her head and tightened her ponytail, brushing her hand along the back to make sure it looked decent without any flyaway hairs. She once again took a deep breath before letting it all out. "Alright, let's do it."

Ted finally pressed a button on the digital camera sitting atop the tripod, and the recording light turned red.

"Hello everyone!" Lucy smiled brightly, waving to the camera. "Lucy Lamb here, with a very special video for you all today. As you can probably tell, this isn't going to be like one of my normal music videos. Obviously, 'cause there's no piano in sight…"

Lucy gestured to the area around her, which was mostly empty save for her bed behind her and the shelf containing her YouTube Play Button easily visible on the back wall. "For those of you who follow me on Twitter, I tweeted out a few months ago that I would do a special Question & Answer video for you guys once I finally reached one million subscribers. Well…"

She slowly lifted her hand to point to the Play Button displayed behind her, shrugging in faux-modesty. The smile which spread across her face spoke volumes, and when she raised her eyebrows suggestively at the camera, Ted let out a laugh. Lucy couldn't help but giggle as well before bringing down her hand.

"…All kidding aside, though," she continued. "I am so incredibly grateful to all of you guys for subscribing to me and liking my videos. I never thought that sitting at a piano and playing music in front of a camera would eventually lead to this kind of success, and it's all thanks to you guys! And so, as my special way of saying thank you to everyone, I promise to answer all your guys' questions you send to me. No matter how weird or random they may be."

Ted snickered, and Lucy grinned as she tapped on her iPad, reading the first question:

 **Jcoolz24:** _When did you start learning the piano?_

"I started playing when I was about four years old," Lucy said, looking back up at the camera. "My dad was the one who started teaching me, and he's sort of been my mentor ever since."

 **Peanut_ButterJelly:** _Where did you come up with the name Lucy Lamb? It's so cute! And I love ur videos btw!_

"Thank you," Lucy giggled. "I got 'Lucy' from my name, obviously - well, 'Lucia' is my full name, but I go by Lucy for short. And as for the Lamb part, that's also because of my dad. The first song he ever taught me to play on the piano was 'Mary Had a Little Lamb', and ever since then he's just called me Lamb as sort of his pet name for me. That's how I came up with my channel's name."

From behind the camera, Ted made a pouty face and mouthed the word 'awww'. Lucy giggled.

"Love you, Dad," she waved at the camera, grinning, and Ted rolled his eyes with a smirk.

 **GrumPie333:** _What's ur favorite food?_

"Probably sushi," Lucy said, glancing up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "Definitely sashimi, or anything with nori. California rolls are pretty great too."

 **Playerrz747:** _What's your fav song cover you've ever performed?_

"That's a tough one," Lucy said, scratching her head as she frowned in contemplation. "I think my cover of Celine Dion's _My Heart Will Go On_ turned out really good, and the theme from _Lord of the Rings_ was a lot of fun to do too. However, I think my favorite song I ever did was the _Super Smash Bros._ theme song since my brother and I play video games, like, all the time."

Lucy grinned up at Ted, who was smiling widely and nodding his head in agreement.

 **MalfoyLuvr66:** _What's ur Starbucks order?_

"Um, it's usually just a venti iced coffee with sweetener," Lucy said, shrugging as she grimaced up at the camera. "Super exciting I know."

 **The Anonymoose:** _Is it true you didn't graduate high school?_

"No," Lucy said firmly. "That's absolutely _not_ true. That's a stupid rumor that's been going around about me on the internet for a few months now, and I would like to clarify that I _did_ in fact graduate from high school last May. However, I had made the decision not to attend university right after high school, and a lot of people interpreted that as me being a dropout. I wanted to address this rumor and just clear the air about it, since I know it's just going to get worse from here if I don't address it at all. I have absolutely nothing against higher education, and I have a ton of respect for people who _do_ pursue college after high school, but it just isn't something I feel I need to do right now. I would like to continue to focus on music for the foreseeable future, and I don't think I need a college degree in order to do that, at least right now. Also, my family is 100% supportive of my decision, which is all that really matters to me."

 **Malificent_45:** _How many brothers and sisters do you have?_

"I have one brother and one sister," Lucy said, grinning up at Ted offscreen. She pointed at him. "My brother Ted is right over here… say hi, Ted."

Ted walked forward and stuck his hand out so that it was visible to the camera. "Hi."

Lucy laughed. "We also have a little sister named Phoebe, who's not here at the moment. She's eleven, Ted's fifteen, and I'm nineteen. However, even though I'm the oldest, I was actually adopted into the Grey family when I was four, and Ted and Phoebe are biological children who came a bit later. So technically, Ted is the oldest, and he so often likes to remind me."

Lucy made a snarky face at her brother, and Ted shot her a smug smirk from behind the camera.

 **TrudyTooty:** _What's your fav place you've ever been to?_

"Oh, that's easy," Lucy grinned excitedly. "Last summer, my Auntie Mia took me on a trip to Paris for about three weeks. It was the first time I had ever gone there, and it was _amazing_ \- she and I visited a bunch of landmarks, like the Louvre and the Arc de Triomphe, and she also took me shopping to a bunch of high-end fashion stores. It was _so_ cool, and I'd love to go there again sometime."

 **I_Heart_LucyLamb:** _What kind of music do you generally listen to?_

"As lame as it sounds, I pretty much only listen to Top 40 music," Lucy said, shrugging embarrassedly. "I know a lot of you out there hate that type of music with a passion, and you think it's all processed garbage, but I actually disagree. I mean, a lot of it definitely _is_ bad, but as I've gotten older I've really come to appreciate how important a role music plays in our culture. Knowing which songs and artists get big at which time really says a lot about where we're at as a culture and as a generation of music-listeners. Growing up, my dad would always play me and my siblings classic songs from older bands, so I'm pretty well-versed in music from past generations. However, I still prefer to keep up with the latest music - it's sort of more for anthropological reasons, though." Lucy laughed.

 **Libby Loo 17:** _When did you realize music was your passion?_

"Pretty much the first time I ever sat down at a piano," Lucy grinned. "Music has always just come so easily to me, and I absolutely love it… I don't think I could imagine my life without it."

 **BellaGirl12:** _You've mentioned before that you're adopted - have you ever met your biological parents? And if not, is it something you've ever wanted to do?_

Lucy read the last question, and paused, staring down at her iPad. She had deliberately picked this question to read last, and now she was ready to answer it. This felt like the moment of truth.

For the first time, Lucy was going to talk about her early childhood.

"…In my case, no," Lucy finally spoke, looking back up at the camera after a few seconds. "I wouldn't want to meet my biological parents. I've only seen pictures of my mother before she died, and I think a man came forward at one point when I was younger falsely claiming to be my father, but aside from that, those are pretty much all the memories I have of them."

Lucy looked down at her lap again, feeling tears build up in the backs of her eyes. She cleared her throat and, after a moment, looked up at the camera again. "I, uh… I know a lot of adopted children out there have a strong desire to know who they are and where they come from… but I actually do remember bits and pieces of where I had come from before I was adopted, and I can tell you with absolute certainty do _not_ want to revisit that. I was… abused and neglected quite a bit as a young child." Lucy swallowed, her heart pounding in her ribcage. "I, um… I remember being cold and hungry most of the time, and I was terrified of everyone hurting me… and it was only when a couple police officers found me alone in an alleyway, stuck behind a dumpster, when I was finally taken away into the foster system and given a new life."

Tears began trickling down Lucy's face, most likely smudging her makeup, though she hardly cared at the moment. Through her blurred vision, she saw Ted staring at her with a shocked expression on his face - she knew he and Phoebe had never been told in detail the terrible conditions in which she had been found before she was adopted, so this was as much news to him as it was going to be to the rest of the world.

Lucy sniffed, wiping away a stray tear on her cheek. "The day my mother and father took me into their home was the best day of my life," she stated, her voice quivering slightly due to emotion. "They are the most amazing parents a girl could ever ask for, and as far as I'm concerned, they, Ted and Phoebe are my real family. And I don't know what I'd do without them."

Lucy closed her eyes, allowing another tear or two to slip down her cheeks. She could feel Ted's eyes still on her as the seconds ticked by, and after a moment where neither of them said anything, Lucy heard the door to her bedroom creaking open before snapping shut. She opened her eyes again to see that Ted had up and left the room.

Lucy let out a shaky sigh, closing her eyes once again. She knew that was probably a tough thing for her brother to hear come from her mouth, but she knew she needed to say it - she had kept that information bottled up inside her for years. She really did remember most of it happening to her, and when she spoke to her parents about it and they had finally confided with her the details of her life before them, it had become very difficult for her to talk about. She knew she needed to do this, though - if not for herself, then for the millions of children out there who were currently going through the same ordeal.

Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes again, looking back into the camera. She still had a video to finish, after all.

* * *

"Hey baby - have you seen the kids at all?"

Ana walked into the living room, glancing around only to see Christian sitting in his usual armchair, reading something on his iPad. He looked up at his wife.

"I think Phoebe is playing outside with the dog, and Lucy and Ted went to go shoot a video," he said, looking out the large French glass doors toward the meadow. He could just make out Phoebe running around while playing fetch with their golden retriever. "Did you need them for something?"

"No," Ana sighed. "It just seemed a bit quiet in here, that's all." She walked over to her husband and perched herself on the arm of his chair. He immediately placed his hand against her lower back, a naturally intimate gesture he'd practiced over years of marriage. "The last few days have felt so crazy, I don't know what to do with all this peace and quiet."

Christian chuckled. It was true, the last few days had been pretty hectic, what with the gala they had thrown for Coping Together a couple nights ago. The last few weeks had been spent preparing for everything, so now that it was over, things felt a bit _too_ quiet.

"You can always start planning for next year's gala," Christian smiled humorously, running his hand along his wife's back, and Ana chuckled humorlessly, giving a small smile.

"Yeah, maybe," she conceded. She was silent for a few seconds before glancing toward the hallway leading to the staircase. "Did you say Lucy's filming a video right now? I don't hear her playing the piano or anything."

Christian strained his ears, and realized she was right - there was no piano music wafting from upstairs as it so often did when Lucy and Ted were filming a video. He frowned in confusion.

"That's odd."

At that moment, however, they heard a door from upstairs slam shut, and a few seconds later Ted came rushing down the second floor hallway, visible to Christian and Ana from the indoor balcony. They didn't get a good look at his face, but the way he disappeared into his room and slammed the door shut behind him told them everything they needed to know.

Ana let out a sighed, resignedly getting to her feet. "Looks like I got my wish to putting an end to all this peace and quiet."

"You sure did," Christian chuckled, also getting to his feet. "You want to try talking to Ted? I'll have a word with Lucy - she might know why her brother's so pissed off."

"Sounds good," Ana nodded, and the two of them went off to talk to their respective children.

Christian went upstairs and went over to Lucy's closed bedroom door. He knocked.

"Lucy?"

He slowly opened the door and stepped inside. He immediately noticed Lucy standing in front of a tripod set up near her bed, fiddling with the camera on it.

"Hey Lamb," Christian stepped inside and shut the door behind him, watching her. "What are you doing?"

Lucy didn't answer, and when Christian got a good look at her face, he noticed her eyes were red and tears were clinging to her cheeks. His heart plummeted.

"Hey," he said softly, immediately moving toward his daughter and putting a hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong?"

Lucy didn't answer, but instead turned and buried her face into her father's chest, wrapping her arms around his torso in a tight hug. Christian hugged her back, hoping that whatever was bothering her he could help by giving her some semblance of comfort.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked quietly after a moment, moving his head down and kissing her over her hair.

Lucy sniffled and finally pulled her face away from his shirt. "…I told Ted about my early childhood," she admitted quietly after a moment, wiping her eyes. "He and I were shooting a Q&A video for my channel, and one of the questions was about my adoption." She swallowed. "I was completely honest, and I got a bit emotional. Ted got upset and ran off."

"Ah," Christian nodded in comprehension. "That would explain why your mother and I saw him stomp to his room in a huff."

Lucy pressed her lips together before moving over to the bed and sitting down. "He's never gonna look at me the same way again," she murmured sadly, looking down at her hands.

"Oh, that's not true," Christian said, moving over to join her on the bed. "He's just a little in shock right now, that's all. He and Phoebe always knew you were adopted, so it's not as if he's learning _that_ fact for the first time."

"I guess," Lucy mumbled, still gazing down at the floor.

Christian stared at his daughter for a moment before putting a comforting arm around her. "Your mother and I are really proud of you, you know."

Lucy merely picked at a fingernail, having heard that type of praise from her father before, but Christian still continued: "I know you've heard it all before, but it's true - your mother and I are very proud of what you've accomplished, both with moving on from your past and also with you pursuing a music career online. Believe me, you're doing a lot better than me when I was your age."

Lucy glanced up at her father and gave him a disbelieving look. "Weren't you starting your company when you were my age?"

Christian chuckled. "I was, yes, but that's not what I mean… I was letting my past as an abused adopted orphan shape and define me. The decisions I made, both professional and personal, when I was your age were always in some way related with how I saw myself. As a result, I had a hard time accepting what I always could have been."

Lucy gazed up at him. "What could you have been?" she asked curiously.

"Happy," Christian said simply.

Lucy didn't say anything, other than to shift her gaze down to her feet once again, looking contemplative.

"I would have never been brave enough to do what you just did," Christian said honestly, and he nodded to the camera in front of them. "Talking about that in front of a camera and admitting the truth to your own brother? All that would have terrified me. But not you, Lamb… and that's why your mother and I are so proud of you."

Lucy didn't say anything, but instead turned her face into her father's shoulder and began to cry. Christian kept his arm wrapped securely around her shoulders, rubbing up and down her arm in comfort. He pressed his lips into her hair and closed his eyes.

No matter how old she got or how brave she was, Christian knew he would always be there to hold Lucia during her most vulnerable moments. He loved all of his children equally, but Lucia had always held a special place in his heart - she would always be his first child, and his first love apart from Ana.

Lucia was, and would always be, his.

His Lamb

* * *

 **THE END**

 **A/N: Thank you all so much for reading my story! If you enjoyed it, please leave a review :)**

 **I do have an idea for a new FSOG story, but I'm not sure when exactly I'll get around to writing it. Real life has been incredibly busy for me, and it only seems to be getting busier… I plan to be back soon, though! Don't you worry.**

 **If you haven't already, make sure you check out my Pinterest board for this story at www dot pinterest dot com/strawpaj/this-life-of-ours**


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